GIFT  OF 


Pi  * 


PESKY   PROBLEMS 
for  POSITIVE 
PREACHERS 


I  do  not  ask 

For  easy  task, 

I  crave  not  fame  or  power; 

I  ask  to  serve 

Humanity 

In  Mankind's  darkest  hour. 

J.  M.  B. 


PESKY  PROBLEMS 
for  POSITIVE 
PREACHERS 

By 

JAMES  MCGREGOR  BEATTY 

Author  of 

"Illustrious  Madmen  of  the  Ages," 
Etc. 


Published  by 

The  TORCH  PRESS  Inc. 
NEW  YORK 

1921 

Address  all  communications  to  James  McGregor  Beatty,  245  N.  Hope, 
Los  Angeles,  Cal. 


Copyright,  1921 
By 

JAMES  MCGREGOR  BEATTY 

Los  Angeles,  Cal. 


J.  F.  Rowny  Press,  Los  Angeles . 

[iv] 


DEDICATION 

This  little  book  of  " Pesky  Problems" 
is  given  to  the  world  in  the  name  of 
Truth,  some  of  its  sentences  being  dic- 
tated by  my  father  in  spirit,  who  in 
earth  life  was  a  "Positive  Preacher. " 
We  join  with  loving  affection  in  dedicat- 
ing this  book,  as  a  well-earned  tribute, 
to  MY  MOTHER,  Mrs.  Elizabeth  M. 
Beatty,  my  helper  and  co-worker  in  the 
cause  of  Truth. 

JAMES  MCGREGOR  BEATTY. 


442725 


Men  are  four : 

He  who  knows,  and  knows  he  knows, 

He  is  wise — follow  him. 

He  who  knows,  and  knows  not  he  knows, 

He  is  asleep — wake  him. 

He  who  knows  not,  and  knows  not  he  knows  not, 

He  is  a  fool — shun  him. 

He  who  knows  not,  and  knows  he  knows  not, 

He  is  a  child — teach  him. 

— Arabian  Proverb. 


[vi] 


INTRODUCTION 

The  author  has  a  desire  to  bring  before  his  readers 
the  facts  herein,  not  alone  for  the  purpose  of  producing 
evidence  of  the  sad  lack  of  real  knowledge  regarding  the 
subject  of  continuity  of  life,  nor  by  reason  of  the  posi- 
tive positions  taken  by  most  of  the  clergymen  upon  a 
subject  (by  their  own  admission),  entirely  unknown  to 
them ;  for  genuine  knowledge  is  unobtainable  from  them ; 
but,  specially  for  the  purpose  of  proving,  if  possible,  to 
the  reader,  that  there  is  NO  death;  and  to  show  that 
life  beyond  so-called  "  death, "  is  absolutely  a  scientific- 
ally proven  fact.  This,  however,  can  only  be  proven  in- 
dividually by  research  and  study,  just  the  same  as  the 
student  would  prove  any  other  scientific  subject.  The 
writer  well  understands  the  natural  scepticism  of  the 
persons  who  are  entirely  ignorant  of  this  branch  of 
Science. 

But,  if  a  man  or  woman  be  ignorant  of  everything  per- 
taining to  this  greatest  of  all  subjects,  and  has  never 
truly  investigated  Spiritualism,  it  would  seem  to  follow 
that  such  opinion  should  count  for  naught,  but  this  is 
not  generally  the  case.  In  a  gathering  of  unscientific 
people,  where  the  conversation  turns  to  Astronomy, 
Chemistry,  or  the  Radio  Telephone,  all  who  have  not 
studied  these  subjects  will  reply,  "I'm  interested,  but 
I  haven't  gone  into  the  subject  very  far;"  or,  "It's 
wonderful,  but  it's  too  deep  for  me."  Just  mention 
Spiritualism,  however,  or  ''Life  after  Death,"  or 
"Psychical  Research,"  and  all  those  who  have  not  even 
studied  the  subject,  or  investigated  it,  profess  to  know 
absolutely  what  CAN  be  done,  and  what  cannot  be  done ; 
or,  if  it  is  to  be  done  at  all  it  must  be  accomplished  as 

[vii] 


viii        PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOB  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

they  suggest — or  they  will  not  believe  in  it;  for,  "they 
have  seen  these  things  exposed  in  the  movies." 

This  class  of  people  exhibit  ignorance  of  the  subject, 
but  the  sad  part  of  it  is,  that  a  large  proportion  of  so- 
called  religious  persons  are  the  most  insistent  that  it 
is  absolutely  unprovable.  Surely  their  opinion  cannot 
be  of  real  value,  for  they  have  no  knowledge,  according 
to  their  own  admission. 

If  this  book  does  nothing  more  than  influence  some 
reader  to  realize  that  there  is  NO  INFALLIBILITY  on 
any  subject ;  and  discovery  of  this,  leads  him  to  inquiry 
and  investigation — if  I  can  so  inspire  YOU,  I  shall  be 
greatly  repaid  for  my  efforts. 

It  must  be  admitted  that  all  should  be  interested  in 
this  subject,  regardless  of  one's  rank,  creed,  color,  or 
even  the  religion  we  find  ourselves  affiliated  with;  for 
after  all,  one's  religious  belief  is  generally  the  result 
of  up-bringing.  On  the  other  hand,  one's  religious  knowl- 
edge is  generally  the  effect  of  past  experience,  as  the 
result  of  a  desire  for  the  truth.  The  searcher  must 
show  a  willingness  to  forget  all  previous  creeds,  and 
dogmas,  in  order  to  be  able  to  think  honestly  for  himself. 

Everyone  who  reads  this  printed  page,  like  the  entire 
human  race,  must  one  day  lay  down  this  mortal  vehicle, 
this  physical  temple,  and  begin  to  function  in  another 
world ;  it  may,  or  it  may  not  be,  in  a  spiritual  body,  and 
on  another  plane. 

The  question  follows — on  what  plane?  This  depends 
entirely  upon  ourselves — our  thoughts,  our  actions,  and 
our  life!  We  alone,  can  steer  our  own  soul  to  the  goal 
of  life,  here,  and  hereafter.  We  alone  must  give  the 
smile  or  the  helping  hand.  We  alone  can  change  our 
life  in  order  to  lift  ourselves  up  to  the  highest  plane; 
to  the  real  Universal  church  anticipation,  as  forecast  by 
the  Christ  himself.  We  alone  must  think  our  own 
thoughts,  and  live  our  own  lives !  We  alone  must  shape 
and  mould  our  individual  character,  and  bring  it  into 
harmony  with  the  thoughts  instilled  into  us  by  the 


INTRODUCTION  ix 

Higher  Powers.  We  alone  MUST  LIVE  OUR  OWN 
PHYSICAL  LIFE!  I,  alone,  can  save  myself  from 
MYSELF ! 

The  writer,  years  ago,  belonged  to  a  Psychical  Re- 
search Society  in  which  were  represented  many  sects  and 
religions,  including  the  Baptist,  Methodist,  Presbyterian, 
Theosophist,  Catholic,  Jewish,  Orthodox,  and  Buddhist. 
This  association,  with  others,  opened  my  eyes  to  the 
fact  that  a  person 's  religion  has  not  one  thing  to  do 
with  Life's  Futurity;  all  of  these  religions  definitely 
teach  us  to  believe  in  an  after  life,  yet  the  Spiritualist 
Religion  is  the  only  one  asked  to  prove  scientifically, 
beyond  dispute,  its  religious  teachings. 

No  one  ever  suggests  asking  a  Methodist  to  prove 
beyond  question  that  his  friends  " passed  on,"  are  NOT 
still  interested  in  the  world  they  live  in.  A  Baptist 
preacher  has  not  one  iota  of  proof  that  his  dead  friends 
are  not  functioning  in  another  world. 

The  Catholic  religion  teaches  that  a  true  servant  of 
the  church  must  take  the  word  of  the  priest,  as  beyond 
question,  that  the  loved  ones  gone  on,  are  in  or  out  of 
Purgatory,  and  are  now  suffering,  or  happy.  None  how- 
ever, leave  Purgatory,  until  their  friends  have  paid  well 
for  their  release,  by  means  of  priestly  prayers. 

The  Orthodox  Church  of  today  is  not  giving  knowl- 
edge of  the  Life  after  Death  as  taught  by  Christ!  is 
not  even  giving  guidance  to  that  end;  therefore,  those 
of  us,  who  want  to  know,  must  necessarily  seek  elsewhere 
than  in  the  orthodox  Theology  for  information  as  to 
Futurity. 

Let  all  who  are  truly  desirous  of  learning  the  truth  of 
religion,  and  the  principles  governing  earth  life,  come 
out  boldly  and  examine,  so  far  as  God  has  given  him 
the  mental  ability,  those  facts  in  Nature  from  which  he 
can  deduce  the  will  of  God.  These  facts  can  be  very 
easily  verified  by  the  honest  inquirer  today,  despite  the 
fact  that  this  is  discouraged  by  some  of  the  so-called 
Christian  Churches. 


x  PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOB  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

The  Biblical  proof  (if  such  it  may  be  called),  is  liter- 
ally accepted,  by  many  as  really  happening  and  as  de- 
tailed many  hundreds  of  years  ago ;  others  again,  oppose 
it  as  unproven  today,  in  the  light  of  scientific  investiga- 
tion. 

Millions  believe  that  Jesus  rose  from  the  dead,  and 
that  Jesus,  Peter,  James  and  John  saw  Moses  and  Elias 
after  they  had  been  dead  many  hundreds  of  years;  yet, 
when  told  that  this  very  thing  can  be  seen  today  in 
Psychical  Circles  all  over  the  world,  they  refuse  to 
believe  it.  Even  though  such  scientists  as  Sir  Oliver 
Lodge,  Flammarion,  Sir  Win.  Crooks  and  "Wallace  have 
studied  these  phenomena  IN  THEIR  OWN  HOMES. 

Bible  students  will  constantly  dwell  on  the  thought 
that  Peter  spoke  while  in  trance,  but  illogically  refuse 
to  admit  that  trance  speaking  is  today  proven  (the 
world  over)  to  millions  of  thoughtful,  intelligent  men 
and  women. 

When  told  that  the  writer  has  had  proofs,  absolute 
and  undeniable,  in  the  privacy  of  his  own  home,  that 
there  is  NO  death,  unbelieving  friends  sneer  and  laugh, 
claiming  them  to  be  only  pure  imagination,  wondering — 
and  even  suggesting — that  he  cannot  really  believe  * '  such 
stuff!" 

Can  anyone  imagine  a  student  of  Astronomy,  who 
really  wanted  to  obtain  knowledge  of  that  science,  refus- 
ing to  look  through  a  solar  telescope?  Can  we  believe 
it,  if  told  that  a  student  of  Chemistry  refuses  to  listen 
to  the  expert  scientists  who  are  prepared  to  teach  him 
its  mysteries,  and  who  possess  the  knowledge  to  do  so? 
or  refusing  to  make  personal  experiments  to  verify  the 
theories  of  Elementary  Chemistry!  I  cannot  imagine 
a  student  taking  the  standpoint  that,  because  his  profes- 
sors know  all  about  his  particular  science,  the  student 
himself  is  justified  in  refusing  to  study,  personally,  on 
the  grounds  that  the  professor's  knowledge  was  evidence 
sufficient. 


INTRODUCTION  xi 

Neither  can  I  imagine  anyone  seeking  to  know  about 
"life  after  Death "  refusing  to  avail  himself  of  what- 
ever opportunities  offer  for  investigation  and  study, 
simply  because  certain  preachers  claim  to  know  all  about 
it,  and  assert  that — as  they  are  specially  selected  to  ex- 
pound and  dogmatize  on  religious  subjects — laymen  are 
not  qualified  to  learn  about  such  things;  or  that  it  is 
impossible  to  find  out  about  them  without  being  invested 
with  power  by  a  bishop,  or  other  clerical  dignitary. 

Few  preachers  know  anything  about  the  life  beyond 
the  grave !  Then  why  leave  this  great  subject  longer  in 
their  hands  alone? 

The  watchword  of  the  Christian  Church  of  the  future 
must  be  "SERVICE"  instead  of  sect  or  creed.  FACTS, 
must  guide  instead  of  fantasy ;  and  we  MUST  BELIEVE 
THAT  WE  HAVE  KNOWLEDGE  instead  of  believ- 
ing that  if  we  have  Faith  we  need  not  knowledge. 

"Seek  and  ye  shall  find"  was  the  command  of  the 
Great  Teacher  of  Life,  and  Love,  to  all  mankind.  Let 
nothing,  therefore,  hamper  your  freedom  of  thought! 
Read,  study  and  think,  for  if  you  are  to  advance,  no 
one  can  do  your  thinking  for  you ;  no  one  can  work  out 
scientific  or  other  problems  in  your  own  consciousness! 
That  is  your  individual  responsibility,  your  present  and 
and  future  development!  In  the  face  of  facts  that  to 
me,  are  indisputable,  I  cannot  accept  the  average  preach- 
er's dictum  about  the  condition  of  the  soul  and  spirit 
after  they  leave  the  body  in  the  course  of  transition, 
from  the  earth  life  to  the  spiritual  continuity.  Many 
refuse  to  study  or  even  investigate  these  matters. 

The  Medieval  Church  taught  that  kings  rule  by  Divine 
Right,  but  this  teaching  by  the  church  was  wrong,  as 
it  was  promulgated  for  the  sole  purpose  of  absolute  con- 
trol of  the  nations  by  Papal  authority.  The  Church 
taught  that  Slavery  was  right  because  it  was  practiced 
in  Biblical  times.  Now,  we  know  that  the  teachings  of 
the  church  and  the  interpretations  placed  upon  the  Bible 


xii         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOB  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

were  both  wrong.  Thus  the  Church  taught  us  that  all 
there  is  to  know  about  a  future  life  must  come  through 
the  clergy  of  the  church,  as  they  interpreted  the  Bible. 

If  we  are  to  believe  fallacious  theories  we  must  admit 
the  power  of  God  has  failed ;  and  that  a  few  Jews  over 
nineteen  hundred  years  ago  received  the  last  teachings 
ever  to  be  given  to  mortal  man  about  the  soul.  If  we 
believe  that  we  are  incompetent  to  use  our  own  brain 
power,  and  that  God  cannot  train  us  to  obey  His  will, 
without  the  intervention  of  church  guidance,  it  follows 
that,  if  we  try  to  find  out  any  more  about  truth,  "The 
Devil  will  get  us!" 

Let  us  get  away  from  such  foolishness!  It  is  a  good 
thing  for  us  poor  mortals  that  God  created  great  minds, 
thinkers,  teachers,  and  exponents  of  True  religion,  and 
that  they  refused  to  be  hand-cuffed,  bound  and  gagged, 
mentally,  or  we  should  still  be  believing  those  false 
teachings,  mendacious  and  selfishly  devised  doctrines. 

For  over  twenty  years  I  was  an  active  member  of  tho 
Christian  church,  yet  during  that  time  it  was  never 
brought  home  to  me  that  there  was  a  veritable,  existent 
spiritual  world,  leading  one  on  to  Immortal  life.  Nor 
was  evidence  produced  that  man  had  a  soul,  although 
I  sought  earnestly  for  such  evidence.  After  investi- 
gating for  many  years  in  the  various  fields  of  hierh^r 
thought,  I  found  satisfactory,  and  I  may  honestly  say. 
undoubted  evidence  in  many  startling  ways,  that  man 
has  a  living  soul. 

I  received  supernormal  proof  that  THERE  IS  NO 
DEATH!  Therefore,  I  submit  to  you,  that,  if  you  as 
an  individual  desire  to  learn  the  Truth,  and  seek  it  with 
the  intensity  I  did,  you  will  receive  power  that  will 
place  you  within  the  ethereal  flood  of  Divine  Truth 
itself;  you  will  awaken  to  a  sense  of  your  own  share 
in  the  Divinity  of  God.  You  will  know  and  feel  per- 


INTRODUCTION  xiii 

sonally  the  Truth — "and  the  Truth  shall  make  you  free." 
May  this  freedom  from  prejudice  guide  you  in  the  read- 
ing of  these  pages. 


Give  us  Love  and  give  us  Laughter, 
And  a  hand-clasp  firm  and  true. 
Give  us  Help  and  lend  us  Courage, 
For  the  task  'tis  ours  to  do. 
Give  us  Facts  instead  of  Fancy, 
Show  us  Truth  instead  of  Creed, 
Give  us  Love  and  Light  and  Kindness ; 
SERVICE,  is  the  world's  great  need. 

J.  M.  B. 


xiv 


Table  of  Contents 

INTRODUCTION vii 

THERE  Is  LIFE  AFTER  DEATH 17 

THE  DEAD  Do  COMMUNICATE 29 

WHERE  Is  HEAVEN  ? 52 

HELL-FIRE  Is  NOT  LITERAL 81 

SPIRITUALISM  Is  NOT  OF  THE  DEVIL 101 

"LET  THERE  BE  LIGHT  ,  .124 


[XV] 


COMPARATIVELY  SPEAKING. 


THEN 
St.  Matthew,   12,  22. 

"Then  was  brought  unto 
him  one  possessed  with  a 
devil,  blind,  and  dumb:  and 
he  healed  him,  insomuch  that 
the  blind  and  dumb  both 
spake  and  saw.  And  all  the 
people  were  amazed,  and 
said,  Is  not  this  the  son  of 
David?1  But  when  the  Phari- 
sees heard  it,  they  said,  This 
fellow  does  not  cast  out 
devils,  but  by  Beelzebub  the 
Prince  of  devils.  And  Jesus 
knew  their  thoughts  and  said 
unto  them,  Every  kingdom 
divided  against  itself  is 
brought  desolation ;  and  every 
city  or  house  divided  against 
itself  shall  not  stand:  AND 
IF  SATAN  CAST  OUT 
SATAN  HE  IS  DIVIDED 
AGAINST  HIMSELF;  HOW 
SHALL  THEN  HIS  KING- 
DOM STAND?  AND  IF  I 
BY  BEELZEBUB  CAST 
OUT  DEVILS,  BY  WHOM 
DO  YOUR  CHILDREN 
CAST  THEM  OUT?  There- 
fore they  shall  be  your 
judges.  BUT  IF  I  CAST 
OUT  DEVILS  BY  THE 
SPIRIT  OF  GOD,  THEN 
THE  KINGDOM  OF  GOD 
IS  COME  UNTO  YOU. 


NOW 

A  sincere  medium  was 
giving  Spirit  messages,  and 
it  was  good.  And  he  helped 
many  weary  hearted,  giving 
them  comfort  and  a  knowl- 
edge that  we  all  live  after 
the  change  called  death.  And 
the  people  were  amazed  at 
the  marvelous  tests  given  by 
the  medium,  and  said:  "This 
fellow  does  not  give  this  in- 
formation, but  by  the  power 
of  the  devil.  He  is  aided  by 
demons."  But  the  medium 
knew  their  thoughts  and 
said  unto  them:  "A  king- 
dom divided  against  itself 
cannot  stand.  IF  THE 
DEVIL  CAN  HEAL  AND 
GIVE  TRUE  SPIRIT  MES- 
SAGES AND  PROPHESY 
HE  IS  DIVIDED  AGAINST 
HIMSELF.  HOW  SHALL 
THEN  HIS  KINGDOM 
STAND?  And  if  the  medium 
does  these  things  by  the 
power  of  the  devil,  by  whom 
do  the  preachers  do  these 
things?  All  are  known  by 
their  works.  BUT  IF  THE 
MEDIUMS  DO  THESE 
THINGS  BY  THE  SPIRIT 
OF  GOD,  THEN  THE 
KINGDOM  OF  GOD  HAS 
ALREADY  COME  UPON 
US. 


xvi 


THERE  IS  LIFE  AFTER  DEATH 

'HY  has  this  momentous  question  been  asked 
through  countless  generations?  Why  have 
similar  questions  exercised  the  minds  of  indi- 
viduals as  well  as  philosophers,  thinkers,  and  scientists 
for  ages  ?  The  scientific  mind,  whose  soul  craved  knowl- 
edge of  facts,  sought,  asked  them,  with  a  desire  for  the 
truth.  The  truly  religious  mind,  weighted  with  priestly 
dogma  and  a  sectarian  desire  to  uphold  its  individual 
creed,  asked  them  with  a  doubting  fear  of  the  possibility 
of  learning  that  it  might  be  mistaken  in  what  it  thought 
to  be  the  truth ;  knowing  that  if  it  received  an  absolute, 
authoritative  answer,  it  would  necessarily  mean  a  re- 
linquishment  of  its  former  beliefs,  or  a  development  of 
indifference  to  any  knowledge  regarding  life  beyond 
the  veil. 

Why  does  it  seem  necessary  to  investigate  these  great 
questions;  "Is  the  soul  or  spirit  conscious  after  death? 
And  can  it  communicate  with  the  living  ? ' '  Has  not  every 
ancient  religion  taught  it?  If  we  are  to  believe  the 
leaders  of  religious  thought  in  the  ages  before  Christ, 
even  down  to  the  present  day,  spirit  communication  is, 
and  always  has  been  an  accepted  fact.  Many  make  the 
error  of  thinking  that  mediumship,  or  the  power  to  com- 
municate with  those  who  have  passed  away,  and  whom 
we  call  the  dead,  is  alone  claimed  for  and  controlled  by 
Spiritualists  or  their  churches. 

Few  Methodists  are  aware  that  John  Wesley  was  a 
Spiritualist ;  and  that  the  phenomena  of  spiritualism  took 
place  in  his  parsonage  at  Epworth,  England,  but  it  is 
beyond  dispute !  Further,  a  noted  English  Bishop,  War- 

[17] 


18         PESK;Y  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

-  burton  fey-  name,  specially  mentions  certain  strange  ' '  rap- 
-  pings  and  noises'7,  as  "warnings  from  Providence  against 
•'•Metnddismi. '•'•'.  He  also  charged  John  Wesley  with  "un- 
scripturally  healing  the  sick;"  and  he  persecuted  him 
in  every  possible  way,  just  as  many  Methodists  would 
today  persecute  Spiritualists. 

Dr.  Adam  Clarke,  the  famous  Methodist  commen- 
tator, testified  to  the  truth  of  such  manifestations,  when 
he  said,  "I  believe  there  is  a  supernatural  and  spiritual 
world,  in  which  human  spirits,  both  good  and  bad,  live 
in  a  state  of  consciousness.  I  believe  that  any  of  these 
spirits  may,  according  to  the  order  of  God,  in  the  laws 
of  their  place  of  residence,  have  intercourse  with  this 
world,  and  become  visible  to  mortals. " 

Trace  the  origin  of  every  religion  and  you  will  find 
that  all  have  emanated  from  spiritual  manifestations, 
and  developed  by  the  use  of  gifts  now  called  medium- 
istic ;  it  is  practically  certain  that  all  religions  have  been 
leaders  in  actual  communication  with  the  spirit  world, 
and  presumably  with  the  spirits  of  the  so-called  dead. 

The  Founder  of  the  Quaker  religion  was  a  Spiritual- 
ist, John  Fox  by  name,  and  he  both  spoke  in  trance  and 
saw  visions.  The  Mormon  bible  was  given  to  the  people 
of  Nephi  in  a  series  of  visions  and  dreams. 

Buddha  was  the  son  of  a  king,  and  the  founder  of 
Buddhism,  which  now,  almost  three  thousand  years  after 
his  death,  has  more  followers  than  any  other  religion,  or 
any  religious  teacher  in  the  world,  including  Christi- 
anity. The  country  of  his  birth,  India,  is  the  only  one 
in  the  world  that  now  has  the  same  religion  that  it  had 
at  the  birth  of  Christ,  except  Palestine. 

Gautama,  as  this  Asiatic  prince  was  called,  was  a  spir- 
itualist (as  we  understand  the  term),  conversed  with 
spirits,  and  was  told  by  a  celestial  messenger  that  he 
would  go  out  into  the  world,  and  become  the  Saviour  and 
Redeemer  of  the  world. 

The    Gospel  of  Buddha,    Chapter  7,  page  15,  says: 


THERE  Is  LIFE  AFTER  DEATH  19 

"Thou  shalt  be  the  Buddha,  our  Master  and  our  Lord. 
Thou  wilt  enlighten  the  world  and  save  mankind  from 
perdition.  Having  thus  spoken  THE  VISION  VAN- 
ISHED, and  his  soul  was  filled  with  peace. "  There- 
fore the  hundreds  of  millions  of  Buddhists  in  the  world 
today,  thirty  centuries  after  the  death  of  their  leader, 
owe  their  religion  to  the  psychic  ability  and  the  medium- 
istic  powers  of  Guatama,  the  enlightened  teacher!  Is 
this  not  historical  proof  of  scientific  communication  be- 
tween this  and  other  worlds? 

The  Koran  of  Mohammed  is  replete  with  visions, 
dreams  and  prophecy.  Zoroaster,  the  great  Persian  re- 
ligious leader,  was  warned  in  visions  and  communicated 
with  spirits.  Then  he  must  have  been  a  spiritualist. 
Laotze,  China's  religious  leader  went  into  the  spirit 
world  in  trance  and  conversed  with  his  ancestors,  and 
from  them— now  get  this  point!  FROM  THEM— (in 
the  Spirit  world)  he  received  the  principal  ideas  in  his 
new  religion. 

Madame  Blavatsky,  the  founder  of  Modern  Theosophy, 
was  a  medium;  although  some  still  deny  it,  there  is 
absolute  proof,  and  through  her  wonderful  occult  gifts 
she  founded  this  great  cult,  which  has  spread  over  the 
world.  "The  Roman  Catholic  church  has  always  taught 
the  existence  of  spirits, ' '  says  Father  Vaughan,  a  learned 
Catholic  theologian  of  England;  he  further  states,  "And 
the  possibility  of  their  communicating  with  us  has  always 
been  taught  by  the  Catholic  church.  To  do  so,  nothing 
more  is  needed  than  the  will  of  God."  Does  not  the 
Catholic  church  teach  the  Communion  of  Saints?  Thus, 
the  leaders  and  the  followers  of  this  world  religion  teach, 
and  believe,  that  communication  between  the  two  worlds 
is  an  established  fact. 

This  church  claims  that  it  is  founded  on  the  Apostle 
Peter,  so  let  us  look  up  some  of  his  Psychical  experi- 
ences. In  the  Catholic  bible  (Douay  Version,  chap.  10 
of  the  Acts,  9th  to  20th  verses,  we  read,  "And  on  the 


20         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

next  day,  while  they  were  going  on  their  journey,  and 
drawing  nigh  to  the  city,  Peter  went  up  to  the  higher 
parts  of  the  house  to  pray,  about  the  sixth  hour.  And 
being  hungry,  he  was  desirous  to  taste  somewhat.  And 
as  they  were  preparing,  there  came  upon  him  an  ecstasy 
of  mind.  And  he  saw  the  heaven  opened,  and  a  certain 
vessel  descending,  as  it  were  a  great  linen  sheet  let 
down  by  the  four  corners  from  heaven  to  the  earth. 
Wherein  were  all  manner  of  four-footed  beasts  and  creep- 
ing things  of  the  earth  and  fowls  of  the  air.  AND 
THERE  CAME  A  VOICE  TO  HIM,  "  Arise,  Peter,  kill 
and  eat. ' '  And  Peter  said :  * '  Far  be  it  from  me ;  for  I 
never  did  eat  anything  common  and  unclean."  And  the 
voice  spoke  to  him  again  the  second  time:  "That  which 
God  hath  cleansed,  do  not  thou  call  common  !"  And  this 
was  done  thrice;  and  presently  the  vessel  was  taken  up 
into  Heaven!  Now,  while  Peter  was  doubting  within 
himself,  what  the  vision  that  he  had  seen  should  in  'an. 
behold  the  men  who  were  sent  from  Cornelius,  inquiring 
for  Simon's  house,  stood  at  the  gate.  And  as  Peter  was 
thinking  of  the  vision,  THE  SPIRIT  SAID  TO  HIM, 
"behold  three  men  seek  thee.  Arise,  therefore,  get  thee 
down  and  go  with  them,  doubting  nothing;  for  I  have 
sent  them." 

Now,  for  the  more  skeptical  ones,  who  still  doubt  that 
Peter  was  a  Spiritualist,  and  talked  with  Spirits  (just 
as  honest  mediums  do  today),  let  us  consider  further  the 
llth  chap.,  same  page,  same  book,  same  Bible,  and  read 
what  Peter  is  reported  as  saying.  He  is  telling  the  multi- 
tude in  Jerusalem  that  the  Gentiles  have,  through  him, 
received  the  word  of  God,  and  is  defending  his  action 
in  having  received  the  Gentiles  into  the  Church.  He 
says,  "AND  I  HEARD  A  VOICE  SAYING  TO  ME, 
ARISE  PETER,  KILL  AND  EAT.  And  I  said :  Not 
so  Lord,  for  nothing  common  or  unclean  hath  entered 
into  my  mouth. ' '  The  12th  verse :  ' '  AND  THE  SPIRIT 
SAID  UNTO  ME,  that  I  should  go  with  them,  nothing 
doubting. ' ' 


THERE  Is  LIFE  AFTER  DEATH  21 

The  12th  Chap,  goes  into  detail  about  Peter  being  cast 
into  prison,  and  about  his  spiritual  and  bodily  deliver- 
ance by  an  angel.  The  6th  verse  reads:  "And  when 
Herod  would  have  brought  him  forth,  the  same  night 
Peter  was  sleeping  between  two  soldiers,  bound  with  two 
chains,  and  the  keepers  before  the  door,  kept  the  prison. ' ' 
8th  verse;  "And  the  angel  said  unto  him,  gird  thyself 
"and  put  on  thy  sandals/'  And  he  did  so !  And  he  said 
unto  him,  * '  cast  thy  garment  about  thee,  and  follow  me. ' ' 
And  the  9th  verse  proves  that  Peter  was  a  trance  medium 
and  obeyed  the  voice,  for  it  says,  "And  going  out,  he 
followed  him,  AND  HE  KNEW  NOT  THAT  IT  WAS 
TRUE  WHICH  WAS  DONE  BY  THE  ANGEL ;  but 
thought  he  saw  a  vision.  And  when  the  angel  led  Peter 
out  into  the  street,  he  immediately  departed  from  him. ' ' 
And  the  llth  verse  again  shows  that  he  was  entranced 
when  it  states,  "And  Peter  coming  to  himself,  said: 
Now  I  know  in  very  deed,  that  the  Lord  has  sent  his 
angel,  and  hath  delivered  me  out  of  the  hand  of  Herod. ' ' 

Can  anyone  imagine  a  clergyman  of  today  getting  so 
close  as  Peter  did  to  a  demon, — a  literal  Devil  as  many 
in  the  church  of  today  consider  spirits?  If  our  modern 
clergymen  were  in  prison,  I  wonder  if  they  would  wave 
back  the  angel,  with  a  profound  gesture  of  self-satisfied 
egotism,  and  say:  "Get  thee  behind  me  Satan."  And 
when  the  angel  would  say:  "Get  your  coat,  and  put  on 
your  shoes  and  follow  me, ' '  would  Mr.  Clergyman  throw 
back  his  shoulders  and  reply,  "No !  Mr.  Devil,  you  can't 
fool  me;  I  know  YOU!  If  you  really  want  to  help  me 
now  that  I  am  in  trouble,  if  you  want  to  prove  that  you 
are  a  REAL  angel,  and  that  you  can  really  communi- 
cate with  me,  then  stop  talking  about  my  coat  and  shoes. 
Give  me  a  talk  about  the  jasper  walls  and  the  golden 
streets  or  something  else  of  importance.  Please  stop 
talking  about  such  unimportant  things  as  my  shoes  or 
my  garments."  The  Rev.  Dr.  C.  E.  Locke,  in  denying 
Spirit  manipulation,  says:  "The  only  alleged  messages 
from  the  other  world  have  been  unimportant.  I  think 


22         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOB  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

if  it  were  possible  for  the  so-called  dead  to  communi- 
cate with  us,  they  would  not  send  trivial  messages." 
Here  is  one  of  Methodism's  greatest  preachers  telling 
just  what  kind  of  messages  should  come  from  the  other 
world.  A  case  of  the  Blind  leading  the  Blind.  To  me 
it  would  not  make  one  particle  of  difference,  were  I  try- 
ing to  talk  with  Mars  or  any  distant  planet,  if  I  received 
a  message  which  read:  "  Rub-a-Dub-Dub, "  or  "The 
Flowers  that  bloom  in  the  Spring,"  the  all  important 
question  in  my  mind  would  be,  "DID  I  GET  AN 
ACTUAL  MESSAGE?"  Was  it  absolute  fact  that  I 
had  received  an  intelligent,  audible  evidence,  so  con- 
vincing as  to  prove  to  me  that  communication  had 
occurred  ? 

Were  I  to  go  to  a  medium  who  said  to  me:  "Your 
father  in  the  spirit  world  comes  to  me  with  this  mes- 
sage for  you,  his  son.  You  were  going  to  a  picnic  last 
Saturday,  but  it  rained;  I  wished  on  that  day  to  be 
with  you,  and  I  want  you  to  get  a  new  pair  of  tennis 
running  shoes,  and  go  in  the  next  race  for  amateur 
championship."  It  might  mean  very  little  to  a  clergy- 
man, but  it  would  mean  worlds  to  me,  for  it  would  prove 
to  me  that  my  father  was  alive  (not  asleep  awaiting  the 
trumpet  call  of  Gabriel  on  the  Resurrection  morning), 
and  that  he  had  already  risen  to  a  higher  life,  when 
he  threw  off  the  material  or  physical  body.  That  ONE 
fact,  would  be  worth  more  than  all  the  orthodox  nr» 
mons  I  ever  heard  about  belief  and  faith.  That's  knowl- 
edge ! 

It  would  prove  that  my  father  was  still  a  thinking 
entity,  with  the  memory  that  I  had  a  weakness  for  tennis 
shoes  and  especially  at  picnics  or  outings;  that  he  had 
a  conscious  knowledge,  even  though  he  had  been  *  *  dead ' ' 
for  many  years;  he  still  remembered  my  ambition  to 
run  in  a  certain  great  race,  which  would  decide  who 
was  the  champion  of  our  town.  This  would  mean  more 
to  me  than  a  long-winded  discourse  on  the  golden  streets ; 
or  a  clerical  effort  to  prove  to  me  that  five  of  the  virgins 


THERE  Is  LIFE  AFTER  DEATH  23 

were  wise  and  five  were  foolish,  although  I  admit  we 
ought  to  be  much  interested  in  giving  knowledge  to  all 
those  foolish  virgins  who  wait  until  the  last  moment  to 
trim  their  lamps. 

All  through  the  ages  everything  the  churches  could 
not  explain,  or  understand,  they  called  the  POWER  OF 
THE  DEVIL,  and  yet  Science  proves  many  powers, 
which,  when  studied,  understood,  and  properly  applied 
are  benefactions  to  all  mankind. 

Less  than  twenty-five  years  ago  the  men  who  first 
theorized  on  a  flying  machine  were  considered  insane. 
Yet  the  U.  S.  Government  recently  spent  a  Thousand 
Million  Dollars  for  airplanes.  It  is  an  accomplished  fact, 
and  where  are  the  scoffers  of  those  days? 

Marconi  has  proven  that  we  can  talk  through  the  air 
WITHOUT  wires,  and  considers  that  we  may  soon  talk 
with  other  planets,  such  as  Mars,  forty  million  miles 
away.  Light  travels  through  the  ether  at  a  speed  that 
would  take  it  seven  times  around  the  world  in  a  second. 
Scientists  laughed  at  Marconi  and  his  wireless,  although 
they  knew  this  fact,  but  he  was  impressed  (possibly 
by  spirit  guidance),  with  a  certainty  that  it  could  be 
done, — and  did  it!  Now  where  are  the  scoffers? 

When  Benjamin  Franklin  was  flying  kites  trying  to 
discover  something  about  the  electrical  forces  which  ap- 
parently ran  uncontrolled  through  the  atmosphere,  he 
was  condemned  by  the  church, — "  because  to  do  this  was 
taking  the  power  away  from  God" — and  they  empha- 
sized the  argument  by  saying,  "that  if  God  had  intended 
us  to  use  electricity,  He  would  have  made  it  plain  in  His 
Word,  therefore  there  was  no  good  reason  for  search- 
ing ! '  '  The  argument  did  not  carry  weight,  and  it  is  very 
noticeable  today  that  even  the  good  clergymen  use  the 
electric  light.  There  are  now  no  scoffers! 

It  is  also  notable  that  the  good  members  of  the  church 
eat  bread,  made  from  flour  ground  by  a  machine  that  our 
ancestors  called  the  power  of  the  devil.  Today  we  recog- 
nize the  mill  as  a  blessing.  Many  well  informed  people 


24         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

remember  reading  in  the  press  that  certain  clergymen 
in  this  great  United  States  of  America  refused  the  use 
of  their  churches,  in  which  to  hold  mass  meetings,  to 
discuss  the  building  of  railroads;  basing  such  refusal, 
on  the  ground  that  God  did  not  make  it  plain  in  His 
Word  that  we  should  use  steam  engines,  and  therefore 
the  church  could  not  sanction,  or  discuss  such  an  under- 
taking. There  are  no  scoffers  today! 

The  Bible  dealt  with  the  life  and  thoughts  of  ages 
long  past,  and  no  mention  appears  of  the  electric  light, 
the  piano,  the  typewriter,  the  telephone,  the  wireless 
telegraph,  airships,  submarines,  the  adding  machine,  pho- 
tography, and  many  other  wonderful  things  our  present 
civilization  now  uses  and  enjoys,  to  the  advantage  and 
prosperity  of  all.  None  of  these  were  made  plain  in 
God's  Word,  nor  was  it  explained  just  how  we  were  to 
use  them,  or  how  to  construct  them.  NO.  Certainly 
not!  yet  God  inspired  the  designing  of  them  and  ira\v 
the  knowledge  to  the  brains  that  evolved  their  construc- 
tion. The  man  would  be  considered  a  fool  today,  who 
for  such  a  reason,  would  not  condescend  to  use  them  and 
profit  thereby. 

Where  in  the  Bible  does  it  give  the  information  about 
ho  motion  picture  projection  machine,  by  which  media 
countless  millions  over  the  world  have  been  interested, 
educated  and  ;nnus<><l?  There  is  no  such  passage,  be- 
cause God  wished  mankind  to  study,  think,  advance  in 
knowledge,  and  realize  the  truth  by  effort.  Did  God 
make  it  plain  in  His  Word  that  the  phonograph  would 
be  constructed  in  order  to  perpetuate  the  voice  of  man, 
or  his  words  of  wisdom,  through  the  coming  years;  to 
register  the  great  singing  voices  of  the  masters  of  song 
after  they  have  passed  out  of  their  mortal  bodies?  Of 
course  not!  It  is  depressing  to  think  that  men  and 
women  who  consider  themselves  intelligent  still  profess 
that  we  must  be  guided,  in  all  we  do  in  life,  by  the  laws 
and  customs  of  the  ancient  Israelites,  who  knew  noth- 
ing of  the  wonders  that  God  has  permitted  us  to  dis- 


THERE  Is  LIFE  AFTER  DEATH  25 

cover  during  the  last  century,  men  who  did  not  even 
know  that  the  earth  is  round  ?  Others  say  that  we  must 
be  bound  by  the  opinions  of  a  few  Galilean  fishermen 
who  knew  not  (unless  Jesus  told  them,  and  it  is  not  re- 
corded), of  the  wonderful  things  yet  to  exist  in  the 
realms  of  science  and  invention. 

To  advance  in  knowledge  we  must  open  our  minds  to 
ANY  truth  that  helps,  any  revelation  that  leads  to  dis- 
covery, any  progressive  thought  that  will  assist  in  form- 
ing a  matured  character;  that  will  lead  us  to  greater 
spiritual  helpfulness,  not  only  of  ourselves,  but  also  of 
our  fellows;  not  merely  enveloping  ourselves  in  a  big- 
oted, unchangeable  creedal  belief ;  egotistically  upholding 
our  own  peculiar  dogmatic  assertions  whilst  refusing  to 
discuss,  or  consider,  other  views  of  truth  simply  because 
they  are  not  part  and  parcel  of  our  own  creed.  Let  us 
not  be  slothful  in  our  lives,  but  realize  what  God's  Will 
is.  That  we  evolve  by  trying  to  live  up  to  the  knowl- 
edge that  He  is  ever  placing  before  us.  Let  us  under- 
stand that  His  ways  may  not  be  beyond  our  comprehen- 
sion. 

Our  Bible  is  not  the  only  revelation  from  God.  When 
we  see  day  by  day  the  miracles  of  natural  laws  working 
in  perfect  harmony  we  behold  a  revelation  of  His  power. 
The  wonderful  inventions  of  modern  times  show  that 
God  is  just  as  much  interested  in  man  as  ever  before. 
It  is  dark  age  superstition  to  assert  that  mankind  is  to 
lie  down  supine,  indifferent,  idle;  and  not  intended  to 
think  or  act  for  himself.  God  gave  us  freedom ;  and  in 
the  Revelation  of  John  is  He  not  referred  to  as  the 
Alpha  and  Omega? 

The  very  thing  the  orthodox  church  is  opposing  so 
strenuously  in  the  teaching  of  Spiritualism, — the  physi- 
cal and  the  psychical  phenomena, — is  treated  freely  and 
in  detail  by  the  Apostle  John.  To  deny  the  possibility  of 
any  of  the  phenomena  therein  is  a  sign  of  heresy  among 
our  preachers.  Interpretation  of  the  ancient  Bible  has 
changed  many  times.  God  is  apparently  increasing 


26          PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

human  intellect.  One  phase  of  phenomena  the  reverend 
gentlemen  believe  in,  and  that  is  ''the  handwriting  on 
the  wall."  And  yet  they  fail  to  see  that  what  God  did 
then,  is  taking  place  in  the  churches  of  the  Spiritualists 
today, — that  God's  handwriting  is  directing  thoughtful, 
good-living  Humanity  to  progress,  and  obtain  knowl- 
edge, by  the  wonderful  propaganda  recognized  in  Spir- 
itualism. The  teachings  of  the  orthodoxy  of  the  present 
day  are  doomed,  and  the  preachers  know  that  "they 
have  been  weighed  in  the  balance  and  found  wanting." 
They  realize,  that  men  and  women  are  thinking  now,  as 
never  before  in  the  history  of  this  world;  their  Pagan 
doctrines,  and  Dark  Age  attempts  to  enforce  religious 
dogmas  by  cruel  persecutions,  no  longer  force  men  and 
women  to  deceit  and  falsehood ;  THE  LIGHT  OF  GOD 
IS  SHINING  ON  MANKIND,  and  the  rack  and  stake 
no  longer  hold  terror  for  the  ones  who  disregard  them. 

In  the  Bible  we  read,  not  occasionally,  but  on  nearly 
every  page  throughout  the  book,  of  Spirit  Return,  Ma- 
terialization, Spirit  Writing,  Trances,  Trumpet  Speak- 
ing, Gifts  of  Healing,  Independent  Spirit  Voices,  Spirit 
Levitation,  Spirit  Communication  in  Dreams,  etc. 

To  those  who  are  interested  and  would  verify  this. 
I  may  state  that  in  my  book,  "Illustrious  Madmen  of  the 
Ages,"  I  have  quoted  almost  Five  Hundred  verses  from 
the  Bible,  evidencing  the  truth  of  what  is  now  called 
Spiritualism.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  the  ministers 
to  whom  I  sent  free  copies,  have  declined  to  refute  these 
references,  even  were  they  able  to  do  so,  or  even  to  dis- 
cuss the  subject  with  me.  Can  it  be  that  they  fear  to 
admit  the  truth? 

It  seems  to  have  never  entered  the  heads  of  many  of 
our  ministers  that  there  was  a  possibility  of  proving,  or 
absolutely  disproving,  the  very  things  they  have  been 
asking  their  followers  to  have  faith  in.  Spiritualism 
has  been  working  slowly  for  60  or  70  years;  has  satis- 
factorily passed  many  tests,  and  has  proven  these  things ; 
today  this  scientific  religion  has  become  a  menace  to 


THERE  Is  LIFE  AFTER  DEATH  27 

illogical  teachings  and  leaves  the  preachers  no  recourse 
but  to  admit  the  truths,  as  evidenced  to  themselves,  or 
fight  them ! 

Spiritualists  are  daily  proving  to  the  world  the  truth 
of  the  Bible  verses,  and  the  falsity  of  many  of  the  teach- 
ings of  the  orthodox  church  regarding  an  after  life.  The 
question  asked  in  this  chapter — "Is  there  life  after 
death?" — is  one  which  the  great  war  seems  to  have  an- 
swered. The  records  of  every  battalion  gave  evidence  of 
spirit  return  in  innumerable  instances.  I  will  merely 
cite  that  of  an  idolized  Colonel,  who  left  his  arm  in  bat- 
tle. Having  been  fitted  with  'an  artificial  limb,  he 
sought  to  return  to  his  old  regiment  in  the  field.  This 
being  refused,  he  obtained  a  command  in  the  Dardanelles 
garrison  force.  At  the  moment  of  his  death  from  dys- 
entery, at  Lemnos,  the  Colonel  appeared  to  his  old  regi- 
ment in  the  trenches  of  Flanders.  The  Company  Ser- 
geant Major  saw  him  first,  and  the  Commander  himself 
sprang  forward  to  greet  the  old  Commander,  who  was 
also  recognized  by  nearly  all  his  men.  As  the  Captain 
advanced  to  speak  to  the  man  believed  to  be  alive  at 
Lemnos,  the  apparition  disappeared.  The  Colonel  died 
at  Lemnos  on  that  day,  and  we  must  assume  that  "Love'* 
for  his  old  tried  comrades,  brought  his  spirit  to  bid  them 
farewell. 

The  body  MUST  return  to  dust!  The  Spirit  lives 
and  labours — in  the  Great  Beyond!  and  sometimes  by 
the  Infinite  wisdom  and  power  of  God  is  permitted  to 
appear  to,  or  communicate  with,  those  whom  the  Al- 
mighty WILLS  TO  INFLUENCE.  It  is  one  of  the 
mysteries  of  Life!  "There  is  NO  DEATH;  what  seems 
so  is  transition, "  wrote  Longfellow. 


EPISTLE  OF  JAMES— SECOND  CHAPTER 

17.  "Even  so  faith,  if  it  hath  not  works,  is  dead, 
being  alone." 

18.  "Yea,  a  man  may  say,  Thou  hast  faith,  and   I 
have  works;  Shew  me  thy  faith  without  thy  works,  and 
I  will  shew  thee  my  faith  by  my  works." 

20.  "But  wilt  thou  know,  0  vain  man,  that  faith 
without  works  is  Dead." 

24.  "Ye  see  then  how  that  by  works  a  man  is  jus- 
tified, and  not  by  faith  alone." 

26.  "For  as  the  body  without  the  Spirit  is  dead,  so 
faith  without  works  is  dead  also." 


28 


THE  DEAD  DO  COMMUNICATE 

|EAR  some  of  the  scholarly  and  brilliant  Los  An- 
geles preachers*  voice  their  positive  prevarica- 
tions. Rev.  Charles  Edward  Locke,  former  pas- 
tor of  the  First  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  says: 
''There  has  been  no  scientific  demonstration  of  a  future 
life.  We  constantly  believe  there  is  a  life  beyond,  but 
there  has  never  been  anything  sufficiently  clear,  from 
the  other  world,  to  warrant  us  in  saying  it  is  an  estab- 
lished scientific  fact.  The  only  alleged  messages  from 
the  other  world  have  been  unimportant.  I  think  if  it 
were  possible  for  the  so-called  dead  to  communicate 
with  us,  they  would  not  send  us  these  trivial  messages. 
What  we  call  death  Jesus  defines  as  sleep.  I  consider 
there  is  no  sufficient  proof  regarding  any  communica- 
tion whatsoever  between  this  and  any  other  world." 

Can  anyone  imagine  a  more  illogical  statement  ?  What 
can  we  think  of  a  clergyman  of  standing,  who  pro- 
fesses a  firm  belief  in  every  word  contained  in  the  Holy 
Bible,  and  yet  professes  to  absolutely  reject  the  hun- 
dreds of  records  of  Spirit  Communications  with  the 
living  contained  therein?  This  statement  was  not  made 
by  him  years  ago,  but  in  the  year  1920.  One  would 
think  this  sweeping  denunciation  should  denote  a  knowl- 
edge of  every  phase  of  phenomena  ever  known  to  Man, 
yet  one  need  only  hear  him  talk  to  discover  that  he  has 
not  studied  (or  investigated)  any  phase  of  Spiritual- 
ism; not  even  its  philosophy,  to  say  nothing  of  its  phe- 
nomena. 

What  does  the  Rev.  Locke  know  of  the  results  of  years 
of  investigation  on  the  part  of  many  famous  Scientists 

[29] 


30         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

who  now  KNOW,  and  admit  in  their  writings,  that  spirit 
communication  is  a  fact  ?  What  does  this  reverend  gent- 
leman know,  as  compared  with  the  millions  throughout 
the  world  today  who  have  actual  knowledge  that  spirit 
communication  is  true?  He  assumes  that  by  a  few  ser- 
mons, he  can  refute  Spiritualism;  place  it  on  the  shelf 
of  his  orthodox  hell;  possibly  annihilate  it  altogether. 
He  cannot! 

If  he  would,  with  an  open,  unprejudiced  mind,  investi- 
gate Spiritualism;  read  and  study,  thoughtfully,  the 
works  of  those  great  scientific  writers  who  HAVE  in- 
vestigated its  phenomena,  he  would  not  be  leading  his 
flock  around  in  a  circle  to — Nowhere !  If  he  desired  not 
to  do  so,  it  would  be  more  honest  when  making  such 
egotistical  statements,  to  just  add,  "SO  FAR  AS  I 
KNOW,  THERE  HAS  BEEN  NO  SCIENTIFIC  DEM- 
ONSTRATION OF  A  FUTURE  LIFE."  Then  he 
would  be  playing  safe.  But  the  bigotry,  egotism,  and 
intolerance  of  olden  times  still  exist  today,  and  they  are 
three  of  a  kind  that  are  hard  to  beat;  they  still  form 
a  bad  combination. 

Some  years  ago  I  had  my  name  on  the  roll  of  Dr. 
Locke's  church,  but  after  longing  for  years  to  hear  some 
sermon,  sometime,  dealing  with  "Life  After  Death." 
or  "Are  We  Conscious  After  Death?"  or  "Can  We 
Prove  That  We  Live  After  the  Change  Called  Death?" 
or  "The  Continuity  of  Existence,"  or  a  dozen  kindred 
subjects  that  I  sent  asking  him  to  preach  upon,  I  wns 
convinced  that  I  had  waited  in  vain.  I  had  been  a  keen 
student  of  theological  subjects  for  many  years  and  I 
felt  surprised  to  learn  that  a  theologian  like  Dr.  Locke 
was  not  disposed  to  get  on  speaking  terms  with  knowl- 
edge of  the  kind  which  I  considered  of  vital  importance 
to  humanity. 

Why  then  should  I  ask  his  advice,  or  seek  a  needle  in 
a  hay  stack ;  especially  after  I  heard  a  statement  he  made 
at  a  funeral  (similar  to  other  remarks  herein  quoted), 


THE  DEAD  Do  COMMUNICATE  31 

namely:  "There  has  been  no  proof  that  we  live  after 
death. "  Shortly  after  this  episode,  I  wrote  him  again 
asking  whether  I  was  correct  in  my  understanding  of 
that  statement,  and  if  so  requesting  him  to  erase  my 
name  from  the  roll  of  his  church,  as  I  did  not  care  to 
endorse  any  such  doctrines.  Dr.  Locke  himself  never 
answered  the  letter,  nor  did  his  secretary;  yet,  subse- 
quently, when  soliciting  money  for  his  church,  two  of  the 
leading  lights  called  at  my  home  for  a  subscription,  when 
it  was  again  explained  just  why  a  donation  was  not 
made. 

Later,  when  I  published  the  book,  "Illustrious  Mad- 
men of  the  Ages,"  I  sent  Dr.  Locke  an  autographed  copy, 
which  never  received  even  the  customary  courtesy  of 
acknowledgment,  despite  the  fact  that  it  contained  al- 
most five  hundred  Scripture  quotations.  Had  Dr.  Locke 
been  an  open-minded  seeker  for  the  truth  (no  matter 
from  what  source)  he  would  have  surely  investigated 
the  statements  therein. 

I  now  have  in  mind  one  of  the  "Golden  Sayings "  of 
Epictetus,  which  may  be  of  help  to  any  self-satisfied 
clerical  who  is  not  open  to  consideration  of  other  than 
his  own  preconceived  opinions.  The  ancient  teacher 
says :  "  If  a  man  would  pursue  Philosophy,  his  first 
task  is  to  throw  away  conceit.  For  it  is  impossible  for 
a  man  to  begin  to  learn,  when  he  has  a  conceit  that  he 
already  knows. "  If  Dr.  Locke  and  others  would  let 
this  sink  into  their  consciousness,  they  might  profit  there- 
by personally,  and  their  congregations  would  not  again 
be  compelled  to  hear  such  a  statement  as  was  made  re- 
cently in  a  sermon  opposing  Spiritualism,  when  he  said : 
"Modern  Spiritualism  is  the  most  colossal  fake  of  our 
time."  The  Doctor  should  remember  that  there  never 
was  a  fake  in  anything,  unless  there  is  somewhere  the 
genuine  article. 

Because  there  are  fake  or  spurious,  debased,  valueless 
coins  in  the  hands  of  our  people  proves  that  there  are 
also  valuable,  genuine  coins.  There  are  false  hair  and 


32         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

false  teeth,  false  faces,  false  friends,  glass  eyes,  and 
wooden  legs,  but  do  not  these  prove  that  somewhere 
there  are  the  genuine  articles? 

While  I  am  writing  this  book  there  comes  through 
the  mail  a  letter  from  the  First  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  of  Los  Angeles,  and  it  is  signed,  "  Affectionately, 
Charles  Edward  Locke,  Pastor."  No,  my  dear  friends, 
it  is  not  an  answer  to  my  many  letters  to  him  on  the 
subject  of  the  "Soul"  and  its  destiny;  or  about  my 
voluntary  withdrawal  from  his  church;  nor  about  my 
book  with  five  hundred  scripture  quotations  in  it.  It 
is  a  long,  carefully  worded  letter  telling  me,  in  detail, 
about  the  new  church  they  desire  to  build,  and  sug- 
gesting that  if  I  have  heard  about  the  widow's  mite  it 
should  quicken  my  religious  fervour;  and  finally,  that 
I  should  give  largely;  adding,  also,  that  this  new  enter- 
prise was  not  a  "Begging  Campaign,"  for  the  church  is 
not  a  "Beggar"  and  "Our  God  is  not  a  Pauper."  This 
request  for  fiancial  aid  is  made  though  I  am  not  a  mem- 
ber, and  have  not  been  for  many  years.  The  letter  goes 
on,  "We  should  PRAY  about  it,  but  pray  with  our 
pocketbooks  opened  before  us. ' ' 

This  last  phrase  may  be  a  good  hint  for  many  spir- 
itualists who  think  that  by  parting  with  a  thin  dime 
at  the  door  of  a  spiritualist  meeting,  they  are  securing 
a  seat  in  Heaven.  I  will  not  take  such  a  risk,  for  it  will 
be  remembered  that  earlier  in  this  book  I  have  shown 
that  St.  Peter  was  a  spiritualist  (if  we  believe  the  Bible) 
and  talked  with  spirits.  We  are  told  that  Peter  holds 
the  keys  to  Heaven,  so  it  may  be  that  he  will  deal  leni- 
netly  with  such  selfish  ones,  even  though  they  have 
squeezed  in  on  a  dime  and  then  cavilled  when  the  me- 
dium gave  them  no  message. 

Before  leaving  Dr.  Locke  I  have  received  another  let- 
ter marked  "Confidential,"  and  it  is  signed,  "Affec- 
tionately, your  pastor,  Charles  Edward  Locke."  The 
date  is  just  six  days  after  the  first  letter,  and  this  one 
is  to  inform  me  "that  his  church  proposes  to  raise  a 


THE  DEAD  Do  COMMUNICATE  33 

quarter  of  a  million  dollars;  that  soliciting  teams  had 
been  organized  to  call  on  the  people;  to  kindly  remain 
at  home  on  the  next  two  Sundays,  and  also  during  the 
evenings  that  week,  to  receive  these  visitors.  They 
would  have  cards  for  me  to  sign  stating  the  amount  that 
I  would  give;  and  that  they  knew  that  Christ  was  de- 
pending on  me  to  do  my  best,  and  that  I  surely  would  not 
disappoint  Him."  I  shall  try  not  to  disappoint  Christ, 
even  though  the  so-called  Christian  Church  of  today  op- 
erates with  the  cry  of  Dollars  and  Dimes. 

The  point  I  wish  to  make  in  bringing  this  before 
my  readers  is,  that  I  could  get  no  help,  no  advice,  no 
sermons  about  what  I  consider  to  be  the  great  subject 
of  the  Soul,  or  its  destiny;  no  consoling  letters  of  coun- 
sel from  a  professedly  affectionate  pastor ;  and  yet  years 
after,  this  church  actually  recognizes  my  existence  by 
sending  me  kindly  letters  when  they  want  money.  I 
can  say  truthfully  this  church  did  not  do  much  for  MY 
spiritual  welfare. 

Now  listen  to  Rev.  J.  A.  Eby,  Wilshire  Presbyterian 
Church,  Los  Anegles,  Calif.,  who  seems  to  be  more  can- 
did, and  says:  " There  has  been  enough  evidence  pro- 
duced, to  convince  many  of  the  existence  of  a  life  beyond, 
and  a  world  beyond.  I  am  not  in  a  position  to  express  an 
opinion  as  to  the  facts,  especially  with  reference  to  com- 
munication from  those  of  the  so-called  spirit  world.  I 
am  slow  to  accept  the  communication  theory  as  an  estab- 
lished fact."  This  gentleman  is  not  so  self-complaisant 
as  Dr.  Locke;  but  just  what  value  is  any  clergyman's 
BELIEF,  when  it  is  founded  upon  ignorance  instead  of 
facts  ?  He  honestly  admits  that  he  knows  nothing  about 
the  facts  concerning  an  After  Life,  or  the  possibility 
of  communicating  with  the  departed.  I  admire  his  can- 
dor, but,  for  me,  his  advice  or  his  opinion,  is  absolutely 
valueless  on  this  subject. 

Yet  so  many  implicitly  follow  clerical  advice,  or  al- 
low themselves  to  be  influenced  by  these  unreliable  me- 
diums of  theoretical  explanations  of  religious  knowl- 


34         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

edge;  the  best  of  whom  speak  from  tradition  only,  re- 
garding a  truth  of  which  they  admit  knowing  nothing. 
The  keen  man  of  intellect,  should  he  desire  knowledge 
of  scientific,  commercial  or  industrial  avocations  in  his 
daily  life,  seeks  his  information  from  an  expert, — the 
best  he  can  procure.  Surely,  the  subject  of  Eternal  Life 
is  far  more  important  than  the  petty  details  of  earth 
life,  and  yet  the  average  human  being  rests  content  to 
go  to  a  selected  church,  listen  to  a  minister  preaching, 
return  home  satisfied  (sometimes)  with  what  he  has 
heard ;  and,  '  *  hoping  that  he  is  on  the  road  to  Heaven. ' ' 

He  should  try  also  to  find  an  EXPERT  in  the  teachings 
of  the  laws  of  God  who  gave  him  the  breath  of  life.  Is 
the  average  church  minister  an  expert  ?  No.  Then  why 
do  the  vast  majority  of  church  members  seek  knowl- 
edge of  the  after  life, — details  of  the  spirit  world, — 
and  many  other  vital  truths  from  gentlemen  who  fiv.-ly 
and  candidly  admit  they  know  nothing  about  it,  and 
do  not  care  to  investigate! 

The  Bible  says,  "Seek,  and  ye  shall  find."  So  it  is 
put  up  to  each  one  of  us  to  do  our  own  seeking.  My 
advice  is,  do  not  seek  knowledge  from  those  reverend 
gentlemen  I  am  quoting,  or  you  are  doomed  to  failure, 
for  apparently  they  know  not  to  search. 

Rev.  Eby  then  continues  to  theorize  on  human  knowl- 
edge by  saying,  "If  my  friends  who  have  gone  on  want 
to  communicate  with  me  they  will  do  it  direct,  if  it  is 
possible  at  all.  I  have  never  had  a  personal  experience 
of  this  kind  and  unless  I  do,  I  don't  believe  it  will  evor 
be  possible  for  me  to  absolutely  believe  it  possible/' 
Still  Rev.  Eby  will  go  to  the  telephone  and  will  not 
question  in  any  way  the  rules,  or  laws  of  nature,  gov- 
erning the  method  of  getting  in  touch  with  the  indi- 
vidual with  whom  he  desires  to  communicate. 

To  my  mind  he  has  just  as  little  liberty  to  select  his 
own  method  of  procedure  in  the  one,  as  in  the  other 
scientific  attempt  to  communicate, — as  a  person  unac- 
quainted with  the  laws  governing  the  operations  of  the 


THE  DEAD  Do  COMMUNICATE  35 

telephone,  insisting  that  he  shall  specify  his  own  means 
of  obtaining  the  expected  communication.  The  ordi- 
nary man  is  so  used  to  connecting  by  means  of  a  tele- 
phone that  the  question  never  arises  in  his  mind  as  to 
whether  the  method  is  correct.  The  clergyman  is  also 
satisfied  to  be  silent;  he  will  never  question  the  great 
laws  of  Science,  or  profess  to  know  anything  about 
nature 's  laws,  or  investigate  natural  phenomena,  for 
fear  they  might  upset  his  theories,  or  peculiar  fancies, 
regarding  theology  or  Churchianity. 

It  is,  however,  only  necessary  to  assert  to  him  or  his 
bigoted  followers,  the  possibility  and  desirability  of 
getting  a  message  across,  from  the  spirit  world,  and 
demanding  why  they  are  not  doing  it,  if  others  can ;  and 
you  hit  them  where  they  live.  You  are  then  talking 
about  something  that  is  materially  (not  spiritually) 
vital  to  a  preacher ;  it  is  another  instance  of  Dollars  and 
Dimes. 

Because  of  his  ignorance  of  the  subject,  his  wilful 
ignorance,  he  will  begin  at  once  to  figuratively  trample 
upon  all  those  unknown  laws  of  the  Great  Architect  of 
the  Universe;  the  great  laws  of  God;  of  most  of  which 
he  is  absolutely  ignorant.  He  will  declaim,  and  tell  just 
how  these  unknown  laws  MUST  work  in  order  to  con- 
vince HIM  that  communication  is  possible.  Even  a  cler- 
gyman cannot  change  the  natural  forces,  or  the  immut- 
able Psychic  laws  of  the  Universe,  however  much  he  may 
wish  to  believe,  or  disbelieve,  a  certain  thing. 

The  Rev.  Eby  then  goes  on  to  say :  *  'I  am  absolutely 
opposed  to  all  seances  and  so-called  mediums. "  What 
inconsistency!  Has  he  not  faith  in  his  own  profession? 
The  same  methods  of  investigation  are  open  to  him  that 
were  used  by  Professor  Sir  William  Crookes  in  PROVING 
spirit  return.  Surely  it  is  not  too  much  to  ask  that,  as 
a  preliminary  at  least,  an  honest  effort  be  made  by  him 
to  satisfy  himself  by  the  only  method  at  present  known, 
by  which  it  CAN  be  proven.  He  will  then  have  some 


36         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

justification  in  denying  it.  Indifference  should  have  no 
weight  with  a  thinking  man.  None  whatever. 

It  would  be  just  as  consistent  to  say  to  a  telephone 
operator,  "I  am  desirous  of  getting  a  message  from  the 
Mayor,  but  I  am  opposed  to  you  acting  as  a  medium, 
so  I  am  going  to  do  this  without  your  intervention.  I 
am  opposed  to  your  switchboards,  your  wires,  your  com- 
municators, and  to  the  necessity  of  keeping  the  re- 
ceiver on  my  telephone.  I  am  going  to  take  off  the  re- 
ceiver at  this  end  of  the  line  and  leave  it  down;  for  I 
will  not  believe  that  communication  is  possible  between 
the  Mayor  and  myself  unless  I  get  a  message  under  my 
own  conditions/'  We  all  know  just  what  would  happen ! 
He  would  get  no  message!  The  condition  is  the  same, 
Mr.  Eby,  and  I  want  to  say  that  you  have  YOUR  re- 
ceiver "down."  You  need  not  look  for  any  message 
until  you  open  your  mind  and  SEEK  the  truth  with  all 
your  heart. 

The  preacher  will  deny  the  truth  of  spirit  return,  or 
communication,  and  yet  he  will  preach  a  sermon  admit- 
ting the  truth  of  the  book  of  the  Revelation  which  was 
given  to  John  while  in  a  trance ;  yet  this  is  a  continuous 
story  dealing  with  Voices  and  Visions.  He  will,  in  the 
course  of  his  sermon,  read  the  8th  and  9th  verses  of  the 
22nd  chapter  of  Revelation,  and  then  deny  possible  com- 
munication between  the  two  worlds.  Can  he  reconcile 
the  facts  therein  recorded  with  the  teachings  of  his 
church,  or  his  own  definite  statements?  Study  the  fol- 
lowing Biblical  verses  which  read :  "And  I,  John,  SAW 
these  things,  and  HEARD  them.  And  when  I  had 
HEARD  AND  SEEN,  I  fell  down  to  worship  before 
the  feet  of  the  angel  which  shewed  me  these  things. 
Then  said  HE  unto  me,  see  thou  do  it  not;  for  I  AM 
THY  FELLOW  SERVANT,  and  of  my  brethren,  the 
PROPHETS,  and  of  them  which  KEEP  the  sayings  of 
this  book:  WORSHIP  GOD." 

Here  we  have  a  case  of  indisputable  spirit  return,  as 
recorded  in  the  Bible,  which  preachers  say  is  infallible. 


THE  DEAD  Do  COMMUNICATE  3? 

This  was  not  the  Almighty  God  speaking.  Simply  a 
MESSENGER  sent  from  the  realms  of  spirit  to  min- 
ister to  people  on  earth.  He  told  John  that  he  was  his 
fellow  servant,  and  that  he  had  been  a  medium  (prophet) 
when  on  earth;  therefore,  he  was  not  to  fall  down  to 
worship  HIM,  but  to  worship  God.  That's  plain  enough 
for  Eby,  or  Locke,  or  Brougher,  or  Selecman,  or  Torry, 
or  even  Billy  Sunday.  Still,  these  dogmatic  clergymen 
go  on  with  their  misleading  cry:  " There  has  been  no 
proof  of  any  communication." 

Few  theologians  condescend  to  study  the  following 
gem  of  truth  by  Herbert  Spencer:  ''There  is  a  prin- 
ciple which  is  a  bar  against  all  information,  which  is 
proof  against  all  argument,  and  which  cannot  fail  to 
keep  a  man  in  EVERLASTING  ignorance ;  this  princi- 
ple is  contempt  PRIOR  to  examination."  Would  that 
all  my  readers,  and  especially  these  reverend  gentlemen, 
would  open  their  minds  to  the  Truth.  Why  will  you 
be  content  to  remain  in  everlasting  ignorance  about  ex- 
isting natural  laws;  about  subjects  of  such  vast  impor- 
tance to  mankind? 

Is  it  that  the  spirit  of  evil  (understanding  the  truth) 
prompts  a  professed  contempt,  prior  to  examination,  and 
incites  a  refusal  to  make  an  unprejudiced  examination? 

I  have  heard  preachers  laud  the  earlier  writings  of 
Thomas  J.  Hudson  to  the  skies,  and  thereafter  try  to 
prove  their  views  against  spiritualism  by  quoting  from 
his  books,  one  of  which  goes  into  his  then  undeveloped 
views  regarding  the  subconscious  mind ;  but,  when  quot- 
ting  they  seem  to  forget  (or  purposely  evade),  or  do 
not  know  of  later  publications,  such  as  his  "Laws  of 
Psychic  Phenomena,"  in  which,  page  206,  he  states: 
'  'The  man  who  denies  the  phenomena  of  Spiritualism  is 
not  entitled  to  be  called  a  skeptic ;  he  is  simply  ignorant, 
and  it  would  be  a  hopeless  task  to  attempt  to  enlighten 
him." 

I  have  personally  found  this  to  be  a  truth.  It  is  a 
hopeless  task  to  try  to  enlighten  the  average  orthodox 


38         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

minister,  or  to  even  get  a  reply  from  those  in  Los  An- 
geles, on  the  subject  of  Spirit  Communication. 

Press  reporters  however,  can  generally  get  a  damn- 
atory statement,  for  these  reverend  gentlemen  realize 
the  advertising  value  of  the  press  reference,  and  fail 
not  to  utilize  its  influence  to  mould  the  public  mind. 
In  many  cases  they  thereby  perpetuate  indifference  and 
ignorance,  whilst  stimulating  prejudice,  and  establish- 
ing doubt  in  the  minds  of  millions  of  people.  If  the 
reader  cannot  credit  this  last  statement  he  should  get 
the  proof  upon  the  printed  pages  of  ' '  The  Brass  Check, ' ' 
the  new  book  by  Upton  Sinclair,  which  is  causing  a  sen- 
sation. 

Any  attempt  to  give  the  clergy  something  to  think 
about,  other  than  what  they  are  willing  to  accept  on  face 
value  (regardless  of  its  value  as  Truth,  or  its  import- 
ance to  mankind),  is  doomed  to  failure  as  a  rule,  though 
as  professed  teachers  they  should  be  ready,  indeed  anx- 
ious to  teach  only  that  which  is  ABSOLUTE  truth. 

The  Modern  English  Dictionary  gives  the  definition  of 
Teacher,  as  ' '  One  who  Teaches ; "  if  this  be  so,  an  ortho- 
dox preacher  cannot  be  considered  as  a  Teacher  when 
he  definitely  admits  that  he  does  NOT  know."  Prop- 
erly classified,  they  are  "Positive  Preachers "  and  NOT 
teachers,  for  one  MUST  KNOW  to  be  competent  as  a 
teacher. 

The  reader  must  bear  in  mind  that  I  am  writing 
solely  about  the  subject  of  Spiritualism  and  its  phe- 
nomena, when  I  refer  to  this  last  thought;  for  I  do  not 
wish  to  close  MY  eyes  to  the  great  moral  good,  and  the 
great  power  available  for  the  upbuilding  of  a  better 
world  which  is  possessed  by  the  churches  of  our  land. 
Because  they  have  taught  that  we  should  lead  clean 
lives,  pay  our  bills,  be  charitable  and  kind  to  our 
neighbors,  and  build  up  good  reputations,  is  no  evi- 
dence of  truth  in  the  statement  of  the  preachers  that 
"There  has  been  no  scientific  proof  of  a  future  life,  or 
if  there  has,  we  don't  believe  it." 


THE  DEAD  Do  COMMUNICATE  39 

The  one  lesson  I  desire  primarily  to  teach;  in  fact, 
the  object  I  have  in  writing  this  book,  is  to  urge  the 
orthodox  preachers  to  keep  within  the  teachings  of  their 
Bible,  which  study  will  prove  that  the  Book  is  almost 
entirely  given  up  to  Spirit  Communications,  Dreams, 
Visions,  Prophesy,  etc.  They  should  come  out  in  the 
open  and  prove  themselves  ready  and  eager  to  learn  all 
they  can  about  the  teachings  of  Spiritualism.  Let  them 
show  a  desire  to  investigate  conscientiously,  intelligently 
and  unceasingly,  in' an  effort  to  discover  the  basic  truth 
about  this  true  Christ  religion.  By  so  doing,  they  will 
consistently  fulfill  their  mission  and  earn  their  salaries. 
They  should  find  the  truth  such,  then  pass  it  on  to  their 
followers  who  for  the  most  part  unthinkingly  swallow 
hook,  bait,  and  line,  and  thus  are  bound  closer  to  the 
land  of  Ignorance. 

The  war  has  taught  us  the  power  of  propaganda.  The 
more  preachers  are  compelled  by  public  opinion  to  study 
and  discuss  the  cosmic  laws  and  the  subject,  "Life  after 
Death,"  the  greater  will  be  their  Spiritual  power.  The 
more  they  "  knock "  Spiritualism  without  investigation, 
the  more  will  all  the  thinking  people  in  their  congre- 
gations desire  to  investigate  it. 

Think  for  a  moment  what  the  possible  result  would 
be  should  all  the  Baptists  in  the  world  deny  the  truth 
of  Wireless  communication.  Their  views  would  not  in- 
fluence Marconi  or  the  world  of  commerce. 

What  difference  would  it  make  to  Wireless  Telegraphy ; 
would  it  affect  the  opinions  of  Prof.  Edgar  Lucien  Lar- 
kin,  that  wonderful  Scientist  and  Director  of  Mt.  Lowe 
Observatory;  should  all  the  Methodists  in  America 
deny  the  fact  that  there  are,  within  the  range  of  the 
Telespectroscope  and  Telecamera  (they  cannot  gauge 
the  fact),  100,000,000  giant  suns  traveling  the  depths 
of  space,  actually  photographed,  would  it  make  the  least 
difference  to  the  scientific  mind?  According  to  Prof. 
Larkin,  there  are  ninety  kinds  of  atoms  now  known  to 


40         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

chemists.  What  right  would  anyone  have,  not  having 
studied  these  subjects,  to  deny  the  truth? 

To  tell  a  preacher  that  it  is  possible  to  communicate 
with  a  ship  at  sea,  and  give  a  consecutive  message,  is 
not  asking  him  to  change  his  previous  creedal  beliefs, 
so  he,  without  any  personal  study  or  investigation, 
accepts  it  as  fact,  and  marvels  at  it.  He  is  not  running 
the  gauntlet  of  public  opinion  when  he  accepts  the  truth 
of  the  statement  that  we  can  send  a  good  likeness  of  a 
man  across  the  continent  by  telegraph.  That  does  not 
affect  his  personal  views  on  religion;  it  does  not  affect 
his  meal-ticket! 

The  fact  that  he  was  not  taught  the  truth  of  life  after 
death  in  his  particular  theological  seminary,  does  not 
justify  his  persistent  opposition  to  it.  We  need  not 
object  to  his  being  ignorant  if  he  personally  desires  to 
be,  but  his  wilful  determination  to  remain  so,  is  one  of 
the  mysteries  of  the  world. 

I  wish  to  make  the  point  that  it  does  not  really  mat- 
ter what  the  church  (as  such)  says  about  Spiritualism, 
for  the  facts  are  existent  and  cannot  be  disputed.  They 
remain  the  same,  though  every  preacher  in  the  land 
rejects  them. 

It  matters  not  what  the  Methodists  say,  think,  or 
believe  about  the  Wireless,  Radio,  Photography  or 
Astronomy;  or  what  the  Baptists,  or  any  other  denom- 
ination, say,  think,  or  believe  about  Chemistry,  Atoms, 
Ions,  or  Electrons.  The  results  of  scientific  investiga- 
tion remain  the  same.  It  would  not  affect  natural  laws 
one  bit,  if  all  the  Presbyterians  in  the  land  should  deny 
that  the  blood  circulated  through  the  body ;  and  yet  this 
was  unknown  only  a  few  hundred  years  ago.  It  would 
not  lessen  the  speed  of  the  motor  in  the  giant  airplane, 
if  all  the  Christian  Scientists  in  the  land  should  deny 
the  reality  of  its  flying.  Nor  alter  the  truth  if  every 
Catholic  in  the  world  refused  to  believe  that  millions 
of  suns  invisible  to  the  solar  telescope,  project  their 
microscopic  images  on  photographic  plates. 


THE  DEAD  Do  COMMUNICATE  41 

We  are  told  that  the  sensitive  plate  secures  and  stores 
light  from  the  shades  of  falling  night  until  the  approach 
of  dawn;  also,  that  night  exposures  are  made  by  the 
aid  of  a  clock  that  turns  the  camera  westward  with 
precisely  the  same  rate  that  the  earth  turns  eastward; 
and,  that  the  visible  heavens  have  been  photographed  on 
over  25,000  distinct  plates.  We  are  entitled  to  ask 
just  what  the  value  would  be,  of  individual  opinion, 
even  of  the  preachers,  upon  these  ascertained  facts  of 
astronomy. 

"  None  whatever, ' '  every  man  of  intellect  will  say 
without  hesitation.  This  being  so,  it  should  follow  that, 
to  any  candid  investigator  or  seeker  after  truth,  it  does 
not  affect  the  certainties  of  Spiritualism,  ONE  PAR- 
TICLE, though  every  Methodist,  Presbyterian,  Christ- 
ian Scientist,  Catholic,  Baptist,  and  every  religion  and 
creed  on  the  face  of  this  old  earth  denies  or  rejects  its 
teachings.  Scientific  evidence  is  not  affected  by  such 
personal  opinion.  I  emphatically  state  that  the  facts, 
and  proven  truths,  of  the  philosophy  and  phenomena 
of  Spiritualism  stand  today  on  an  unquestionably  firm 
basis.  Unfortunately,  too  many  people  do  not  under- 
stand that  mere  belief  cannot  change  a  single  atom  of 
truth.  This  book  upholds  the  undeniable  truth  of  Spir- 
itualism. 

When  one  hears  some  famous  preacher  who  pretends 
to  know  all  about  it,  without  previous  study,  either  of 
the  published  records  of  Psychical  Research  Societies, 
or  of  the  investigation  of  independent  thinkers  and 
scientists,  profess  to  "expose  Spiritualism/'  it  becomes 
ridiculous, — if  it  were  not  so  serious  in  its  bearing  on 
humanity  at  large.  He  might  just  as  well  announce  an 
expose  of  Astronomy,  or  Natural  Philosophy,  Chem- 
istry or  Surgery.  He  might  as  well  try  to  expose  Wire- 
less Telegraphy,  the  laws  of  which  he  knows  nothing, 
whatever. 

Truth  in  the  past  has  emerged  from  its  obscurity  in 
all  sciences  and  always  will!  If  these  clever  gentlemen 


42         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

would  investigate  sufficiently  to  justify  themselves  in 
appearing  as  qualified  exponents,  and  entitled  to  expose 
Fake  Spiritualism,  or  prove  how  many  charlatans  impose 
upon  the  uninformed  public,  or  seekers  of  knowledge  on 
the  subject,  they  would  be  doing  a  service  to  mankind; 
one  that  would  be  greatly  appreciated  by  all  real  spir- 
itualists. To  do  so  however,  would  be  an  acknowledg- 
ment that  Spiritualism  is  genuine,  and  that  is  the  very 
concession  they  must  avoid.  Dr.  Locke  lays  this  down 
beyond  any  doubt,  for  he  said  in  a  sermon,  ''There  is 
no  such  thing  as  a  genuine  medium,  they  are  all  fakes ; 
and  there  never  was  a  genuine  message  from  the  spirit 
world  to  prove  that  we  live  after  death." 

Back  to  your  study  of  the  Bible,  Dr.  Locke,  and  read 
the  facts  recorded  about  Abraham,  Moses,  Jacob,  Joseph, 
Noah,  Lot,  Elias,  Matthew,  Mark,  Paul,  John,  Peter  and 
Cornelius,  who  all  talked  with  Spirits,  beheld  visions, 
learned  facts  in  dreams,  and  communicated  with  the 
unseen  world  beyond,  if  the  Bible  is  to  be  depended 
upon. 

The  pertinent  preacher  should  know  where  the  Bible 
came  from,  although  he  does  not  preach  about  its  origin, 
or  give  the  detailed  facts  about  its  source  to  his  audi- 
ences. Doubtless  his  technical  theological  knowledge 
of  the  book  will  influence  his  expression  of  opinion  re- 
garding the  truth  of  such  stories  as  refer  to  Spirit  com- 
munications. 

He  knows,  or  should  know,  that  there  are  in  existence 
no  known  definite  and  reliable  historical  records  of  the 
proceedings  of  the  Council  of  Nicea,  which  was  con- 
vened in  the  year  327  A.  D.,  by  the  Roman  Emperor 
Constantine,  for  the  purpose  of  compiling  one  Bible, — 
instead  of  accepting  one  of  over  three  hundred  varia- 
tions then  in  the  Empire — (each  claiming  to  be  the  true 
Word  of  God),  as  the  guide  of  Christian  faith.  The 
evidence  therefore  is,  that  our  present  Bible  has  been 
gathered  from  tradition  by  diligent  historians  and  from 
the  fragmentary  manuscripts  of  early  writers. 


THE  DEAD  Do  COMMUNICATE  43 

The  earlier  Greek  religion  (Mythraism),  finally 
adopted  that  of  the  followers  of  Christ,  by  edict  of  Con- 
stantine,  who  made  Christianity  the  State  religion;  the 
Mythraists  (not  changing  their  ritual),  then  changed 
their  designation,  which  finally  became  known  as  the 
Catholic  Religion.  Protestantism  is  but  an  offshoot  of 
the  Catholic  religion,  changed  somewhat  by  numerous 
sects,  having  in  themselves  many  branches. 

Historians  tell  us  that  all  of  the  308  manuscripts  voted 
upon  by  the  Council  of  Nicea  were  copies  only ;  even  at 
that  early  date  there  were  no  originals  in  existence. 
After  many  months  of  wrangling,  233  of  the  308  books 
were  absolutely  rejected  and  burned;  from  the  remain- 
ing 75  certain  extracts  were  selected,  collated,  and  having 
been  finally  decided  upon,  written  together  in  one  book, 
now  called  the  Holy  Bible.  Let  the  Roman  Catholic 
take  comfort  (or  the  Protestant  regret),  that  there  was 
but  one  Holy  Bible,  i.  e.,  the  Catholic,  from  327  A.  D., 
until  Martin  Luther 's  time. 

In  1534  came  more  alterations  of  the  Holy  volume, 
when  nine  entire  books  were  taken  out.  The  remaining 
66  books  are  now  recognized  as  being  the  Protestant 
Bible.  Even  then  the  decision  was  not  unanimous,  for 
Luther  wanted  only  65, — seeking  to  leave  out  the  Epistle 
of  James, — but  he  was  outvoted,  and  it  still  remains  as 
an  infallible  part  of  the  Word.  The  Bible  has  been 
translated  into  about  226  various  languages,  each  of 
them  differing  from  the  other,  in  the  rendering  of  the 
various  passages,  as  translated,  into  the  vernacular.  Of 
these  versions  many  are  today  moribund,  but  as  many  as 
a  hundred  still  exist,  no  two  alike  in  details. 

In  the  little  booklet,  "Is  the  Bible  the  Infallible  Word 
of  God, ' '  by  the  Hon.  Robert  Addison  Dague,  one  of  the 
ablest  thinkers  in  this  country,  we  read :  "Prior  to  1604- 
1611  the  difference  of  translations  of  so-called  "Words 
of  God"  became  so  annoying  that  the  pious  King  James 
of  England  called  together  a  commission  of  leading  theo- 
logical scholars,  and  the  translation  that  bears  his  name 


44         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

became  the  authorized  Bible  of  Protestantism/'  It  was 
printed  as  a  government  monopoly  and  until  recently 
remained  unchanged,  though  erudite  Protestant  clergy- 
men recognized  that  the  King  James'  Bible  was  very 
imperfect;  indeed  one  distinguished  Bible  scholar 
asserted  that  it  contained  several  hundred  errors  in  the 
forms  of  mistranslation,  interpolations  and  alterations. 

Therefore  another  revision  was  made  of  the  New 
Testament  in  1881,  of  the  Old  in  1885,  by  a  committee 
of  British  and  American  Protestant  Scholars  and  Divines. 
In  that  new  version  hundreds  of  errors  were  corrected ; 
entire  verses  and  sections  of  previous  chapters  omitted, 
and  the  style  of  language  changed.  This  latest,  most 
scholarly  and  most  accurate  revision  did  not  however 
please  many  of  the  orthodox  Protestant  clergy,  notwith- 
standing that  it  was  the  conjoint  work  of  their  own  most 
competent  scholars.  One  of  the  reasons  given  was,  that 
the  revisers  apparently  found  that  the  texts  relied  upon 
to  sustain  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity,  or  Deification  of 
Jesus,  were  not  in  the  original  manuscripts,  but  were 
interpolated  into  the  Biblical  writings  about  the  third 
century. 

Let  me  quote  an  instance:  The  King  James  version. 
1st  John,  5-7,  says; — "For  there  are  three  that  bear 
record  in  heaven,  the  Father,  the  Word,  and  the  Holy 
Ghost ;  and  these  three  are  one. ' '  This  verse  is  not  found 
in  the  new  version.  Why?  It  was  not  put  in  the  new 
version  of  1881  because  presumably  the  revisers  (not- 
withstanding they  were  themselves  Trinitarians),  dis- 
covered the  verse  to  be  an  interpolation,  as  were  also 
several  other  paragraphs  of  the  same  import.  The  schol- 
arly revisers  were  honest  enough  to  acknowledge  the 
forgery,  notwithstanding  that  the  discovery  knocked  the 
Scriptural  props  from  under  the  doctrine  of  Trinitarian- 
ism  and  the  Atonement. 

That  revision,  known  as  the  Oxford  revision  was  fin- 
ished nearly  thirty  years  ago,  since  which  time  the 
majority  of  the  orthodox  Protestant  clergy  have  done  all 


THE  DEAD  Do  COMMUNICATE  45 

in  their  power  to  ignore  and  discredit  the  new  edition, 
and  thereby  suppress  the  truth.  They  have  gone  right 
on  preaching  Trinitarianism,  the  Deity  of  Jesus,  and  the 
Atonement,  in  accordance  with  the  texts  in  the  older 
King  James '  version,  which  their  own  scholars  and 
translators  deliberately  eliminated. 

The  new  English  ll Oxford"  Bible  of  1881-1885,  is 
now  recognized  as  the  most  reliable  of  all  the  many 
translations, — yet  the  protestant  clergy  will  not  quote 
from  it,  for  the  reason  named.  It  is  however  the  stan- 
dard now  used  by  the  spiritualists  and  other  liberal, 
broad-minded  people  and  sects. 

Let  me  say  here,  that  the  Roman  Catholic  clergy, 
knowing  more  of  the  inner  proceedings  as  to  how  the 
book  called  the  Bible  was  compiled,  do  not  consider  it 
as  infallible. 

I  am  however,  insisting  that  it  is  the  duty  of  all 
leaders  and  teachers  to  tell  the  whole  truth  about  the 
Bible,  as  do  the  modern  liberal  sects,  or  else  admit  the 
recorded  stories  of  spirit  communications,  realizing  that 
all  the  verified  stories  of  spirit  intercourse  told  today  are 
just  as  possible  as  any  of  those  recorded  in  the  Bible. 
The  Psychic  phenomena  of  today  and  those  of  Divine 
revelation  in  Biblical  times,  must  stand  or  fall  together, 
for  Divine  Power  never  changes. 

If  it  were  true  THEN  it  is  possible  NOW.  If  it  hap- 
pened THEN,  it  can  happen  NOW.  Spiritualists  say  it 
DID  happen  then,  and  they  prove  it  does  happen  now. 
Jesus  proved  it  by  His  own  good  works,  and  told  His 
followers  that  "  Greater  things  than  these  shall  ye  do ; ' ' 
yet  today  these  professed  followers  of  Jesus  say  pos- 
itively such  so-called  miracles  cannot  be  done;  or,  if 
done,  it  is  the  work  of  a  devil.  How  can  they  reason- 
ably reconcile  such  opposition? 

Paul  said,  " Prove  all  things;  hold  fast  that  which  is 
good."  The  spiritualists  claim  they  HAVE  proved  that 
there  is  no  actual  death.  The  modern  preacher  says, 


46         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

as  he  thinks  pertinently,  that  HE  can't  prove  it;  and 
then  gets  disputatious  when  the  spiritualists  do  prove  it. 

Now  hear  the  views  of  the  Rev.  J.  A.  Francis,  First 
Baptist  church,  Los  Angeles:  "The  war  has  created 
a  revival  of  all  forms  of  Spiritualism,  which  is  sweeping 
the  world  in  a  wave  unlike  anything  ever  before  recorded 
in  history.  .  .  .  After  the  Civil  War  we  had  the 
same  thing,  on  a  smaller  scale.  The  movement  grew  to 
such  proportions  that  in  Boston  a  huge  temple  was 
erected  by  those  who  believed  in  this  theory,  but  it 
gradually  died  out,  and  some  years  ago  the  temple  was 
sold  for  a  motion  picture  theatre.  I  believe  something 
like  that  will  follow  the  present  wave." 

"A  peculiar  thing  about  the  theories  is  the  alleged 
pictures  of  life  in  the  other  world.  If  I  believed  that 
communication  were  possible,  I  would  believe  the  pic- 
tures. The  only  information  that  I  accept  is  that  con- 
tained in  the  Bible,  and  that  is  mostly  symbolical  and 
allegorical.  When  it  comes  to  bridging  the  gulf,  I  can 
only  say,  'You've  got  to  show  me.'  And  if  you  ask 
me  about  life  in  the  other  world,  or  anything  else  about 
Professor  Lodge's  theories,  I  will  frankly  say  I  don't 
know  anything  about  it." 

It  is  evident  this  clergyman  does  not  accept  what  is 
contained  in  the  Bible.  If  he  did,  the  recorded  return 
of  Samuel's  spirit  to  converse  with  Saul  should  cer- 
tainly convince  this  preacher  that  a  spirit  CAN  talk  with 
man.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  he  claims  that  he  accepted 
the  Bible  as  literally,  and  infallibly  true,  then  he  can- 
not evade  such  distinct  evidence  of  spirit  intercourse 
as  the  one  wherein  Saul  was  informed  that  he  would  be 
in  the  spirit  world  with  his  sons  on  the  morrow;  for 
Saul  was  actually  killed  as  foretold  in  Biblical  history. 

As  this  gentleman  frankly  admits  that  he  knows  noth- 
ing whatever  about  the  life  after  death,  how  can  he  pro- 
fess to  advise  the  followers  who  pay  his  salary  for  teach- 


THE  DEAD  Do  COMMUNICATE  47 

ing  about  these  Biblical  matters,  when  he  has  no  such 
knowledge  ? 

How  can  he  justify  his  maintaining  such  an  important 
pastoral  position  when  his  knowledge  about  the  spiritual 
truths,  recorded  a  thousand  times  in  the  Word  of  God, 
is  utterly  inadequate  to  satisfy  the  demand  of  thinking 
men  and  women? 

The  reverend  gentleman  is  doing  a  service  to  true  re- 
ligion in  admitting  the  fact  that  he  does  not  know  any- 
thing whatever  about  the  "after  life;"  for,  by  so  doing, 
he  stimulates  any  person  of  an  inquiring  turn  of  mind,  or 
with  a  thirst  for  knowledge  about  these  subjects,  to  seize 
the  opportunity  to  visit  some  other  church  in  order  to 
learn  something  of  value  concerning  futurity.  He  cer- 
tainly could  not  call  any  conscientious  student  to  order 
for  carrying  out  an  honest  desire  to  seek  for  "that  some- 
thing" of  which  his  pastor  could  not  tell  him.  If  the 
preachers  neglect  to  satisfy  the  inborn  longing  of  every 
thinking  person;  the  craving  to  know  the  truth  about 
the  most  important  event  that  ever  happened  to  human- 
ity on  this  planet,  it  will  be  only  a  few  years  until  they 
will  have  no  audience,  and  no  church  in  which  to  preach. 

Jewish  Rabbi,  Rev.  Dr.  S.  Hecht,  formerly  of  Sinai 
Temple,  Los  Angeles,  says:  "I  believe  in  Immortality, 
but  not  in  a  physical  sense.  But  when  you  ask  me  about 
certain  scientists*  theories,  I  say  I  don't  know  anything 
about  such  matters,  and  I  don't  believe  anyone  else 
does." 

Personally  I  cannot  understand  why  men  who  know 
nothing  about  Spiritualism  are  requested  to  give  opin- 
ions about  it,  or  invited  to  influence  public  opinion,  and 
thereby  theorize  about  Spiritualism  in  any  way.  They 
cannot  possibly  give  a  satisfactory  or  reliable,  truthful 
statement  about  something  of  which  they  know  nothing. 

When  will  the  public  learn  not  to  ask  a  pagan  if  he  re- 
members the  Golden  Text,  or  try  to  engage  a  child  in 
conversation  about  the  proposed  communication  with  the 


48        PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

planet  Mars?  Where  there  is  no  visible  evidence  of 
studied  knowledge,  there  can  be  no  appreciation  of  any 
dogmatic  assertion ;  but  condemnation  must  result  when 
preachers  willfully  stay  in  a  blind  condition  and  con- 
tinue to  teach,  or  pretend  to  teach,  about  a  spiritualism 
of  which  they  know  nothing. 

Let  my  readers  now  consider  the  Catholic  Church, 
which  makes  a  declaration  of  belief  in  the  Communion 
of  Saints.  This  cannot  mean  anything  except  that  dead 
saints,  or  holy  people  who  once  lived  here  on  earth,  talk 
with  the  living.  Notwithstanding  this  tenet,  a  promi- 
nent priest,  Rev.  John  Cawley  (Chancellor-Secretary  of 
the  Catholic  Diocese  of  Monterey  and  Los  Angeles),  takes 
the  position  that  "Spirits  happy  with  God  would  not 
CONDESCEND  to  communicate  with  so  materialistic  a  world 
as  the  one  in  which  we  live.  We  BELIEVE  that  the 
soul  is  immortal,  and  that  there  is  a  life  of  indescril) 
able  happiness  for  those  who  live  according  to  the  teach- 
ings of  the  Church.  It  is  impossible  to  predict  what 
Science  may  bring  forth,  but  for  the  present  we  are 
unwilling  to  accept  such  theories  as  facts.*' 

Spiritualists  reply  by  asking  what  more  proof  can 
Science  bring  forth  than  has  already  been  given?  To 
the  mind  of  the  writer,  this  statement  implies  a  belief 
that  only  people  who  lived  and  died  in  the  Catholic  faith 
are  capable  of  coming  back ;  but  it  amplifies  it  by  stating, 
inferentially,  that  those  "happy  with  God"  would  not 
care  about  those  they  have  left  on  earth ;  and  therefore, 
"would  not  condescend  to  come  back."  Yet  Catholics 
admit  they  BELIEVE  in  communion  of  Saints ;  and  that 
the  Saints  come  back,  and  help  people  here  on  earth  who 
make  the  twelve  stations  of  the  Cross. 

It  is  a  good  thing  for  the  world  today  that  no  par- 
ticular church,  or  body  of  men,  can,  as  they  did  in  the 
old  days  of  the  Inquisition,  reserve  for  themselves  the 
right  to  question  mankind  as  to  differences  of  opinion, 
or  terrorize  the  followers  of  any  particular  creed  or 


THE  DEAD  Do  COMMUNICATE  49 

dogma,  or  arrogate  to  themselves  only,  the  knowledge, 
and  mental  capacity,  necessary  to  define  the  spiritual 
laws  of  the  universe.  The  day  for  such  religious  con- 
trol has  long  passed. 

It  is  the  Almighty  God  alone  who  sets  the  Laws  of 
spiritual  conditions.  Who  lives  the  God-like  life  regard- 
less of  caste,  creed,  or  color,  is  the  one  who  will  be  able 
to  best  demonstrate  the  great  Laws  of  God,  to  His  own 
eternal  benefit  and  for  the  edification  of  all  mankind. 

If  it  be  true  that  a  priest  can  by  some  great,  but  gen- 
erally unknown  law  of  Divine  Power,  communicate,  lay 
virtue  of  his  office,  with  the  other  worlds — in  order  to 
ask  forgiveness  of  sins ;  also,  if  the  saints  CAN  come  back 
to  this  world  to  help  those  who  believe  that  this  is  so, 
then  it  is  logical  to  believe  that,  by  the  same  unknown 
law,  any  other  truly  religious  person  could  reach  the 
tribunal  of  God  and  do  the  same  thing,  if  he  brought 
that  law  into  operation. 

To  believe  that  any  Divine  law  is  controlled  by  a  par- 
ticular church,  is  as  preposterous  as  the  assertion  that 
only  Presbyterians  can  be  inventors ;  or,  that  only  Meth- 
odists should  be  granted  the  privilege  of  operating  an 
airship;  or  that  Baptists  only  may  gaze  through  a  tele- 
scope and  delve  into  the  wonders  of  our  universe.  There 
is  one  noble  thought  that  all  men  admit  about  the  power 
of  God,  viz. :  "  He  is  no  respecter  of  persons. ' ' 

In  the  tenth  chapter  of  Acts,  verse  34,  we  read, 
(and  by  the  way  he  is  the  reputed  Rock  upon  which  the 
Catholic — not  merely  the  Roman  Catholic — Church  is 
founded).  "Then  Peter  opened  his  mouth  and  said: 
Of  a  truth  I  perceive  that  God  is  no  respecter  of  per- 
sons. ' '  The  thirty-fifth  verse  says :  ' '  But  in  every  nation 
he  that  feareth  him  (God)  and  worketh  righteousness, 
is  accepted  with  him."  This  is  pretty  plain  language! 
And  emanating  from  Peter,  the  founder  of  the  Catholic 
Church,  is  entitled  to  respect.  If  Peter  is  right,  and  the 
Bible  true,  then  any  person,  whether  the  follower  of  any 
religion,  or  even  of  no  accepted  (definite,  or  official) 


50         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOB  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

religion,  in  any  Nation  on  the  globe  is  acceptable  to 
God, — providing,  of  course,  they  are  the  sincere  workers 
of  righteousness. 

There  is  little  doubt  that  the  cause  of  much  organized 
propaganda  against  Spiritualism  is  due  to  the  recent 
great  loss  of  membership  in  the  many  sectarian  churches 
of  the  land.  Here  are  the  figures,  as  given  officially  by 
Dr.  H.  K.  Carroll,  compiler  of  the  First  Official  Census 
of  Religions  in  the  United  States.  These  interesting 
statistics  show  that,  during  1919,  eleven  of  the  hitherto 
most  prosperous  denominations  showed  decreases.  The 
census  states  that  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  shows 
a  decrease  of  69,940  members.  The  Presbyterian  a  de- 
crease of  41,119  members;  the  Baptists  a  decrease  of 
44,153  members,  and  the  Disciples  of  Christ  a  decrease 
of  17,645  members.  The  converse  is  shown  in  the  fact 
that  the  Spiritualist  churches  are  gaining  in  leaps  and 
bounds.  We  must  admit  that  America  is  not  a  Christian 
nation.  The  thoughts,  acts  and  ideals  of  modern  Ameri- 
can life  cannot  in  any  way  be  compared  with  the  teach- 
ings of  the  gentle  Nazarene.  The  nation  is  ceasing  to 
be  absolutely  formally  Christian. 

The  Federal  Council  of  Churches  recently  reported 
there  were  30,000  pastorless  churches  in  the  United 
States.  Oberlin  College  has  long  been  known  as  a  center 
for  Evangelical  religion,  but  last  year  not  a  single  man 
of  the  graduating  class  entered  the  ministry.  This  means 
simply  that  most  thinking  men  and  women  of  today 
have  finally  and  definitely  rejected  the  old-time  Christian 
dogmatism. 


THE  DAWN  OF  A  LIFE 

The  Dawn  of  a  Life, 

Oh,  how  beautiful. 

Back  from  the  worlds  of  Light. 

Again  to  breathe  and  live,  to  see 

The  strength  and  scope,  the  might 

Of  a  Master. 


The  Morning  of  Life, 
Oh,  how  wonderful. 
Brightening  suns  call,  "  Arise. 
A  life  of  service  waits,  shall  I 
Embrace  this  chance,  this  prize 
Of  a  Master? 


>  i 


The  Noon-day  of  Life, 
Oh,  how  bountiful. 
Feasting,  a  repast  rare, 
Am  I  partaking  now  of  joys 
And  of  Knowledge,  laid  bare 
By  a  Master? 

The  Evening  of  Life, 

Oh,  how  sorrowful. 

If  TRUTH  found  not  a  way 

Into  the  inner  heart,  the  Soul 

With  penetrating  ray 

Of  a  Master. 

The  Night-side  of  Life, 

Oh,  how  dutiful. 

When  Peace  and  Joy  and  Love 

Supremely  rule  the  Soul,  the  heart 

Then  beats  with  One  above 

Called  the  Master. 

J.  M.  B. 


51 


WHERE  IS  HEAVEN? 

[NISTERS  have  assured  their  congregations  for 
hundreds  of  years  that  all  who  are  saved  by  the 
blood  of  Jesus  will  go  direct  to  a  place  called 
heaven.  The  Catholic  Church  teaches  that  the  dead  in 
Purgatory  can  be  assisted  by  the  prayers  and  good 
works  of  the  faithful  on  earth.  I  quote  the  following 
from  a  Catholic  pamphlet:  "Purgatory  in  the  light  of 
Reason,"  which  harmonizes  with  spiritualistic  teachings, 
and  with  Justice,  ' 'Which  seems  to  demand  Purgatory" 
(which  spiritualists  call  Astral  world).  "You  will  be 
astonished  at  the  frequency  of  God's  declared  promise 
to  reward  or  punish  ACCORDING  TO  ONE'S  WORKS. 
Therefore,  some  will  be  punished  longer  and  more  sevcrly 
than  others ;  and  how  will  this  be  if  there  be  no  punish- 
ment but  hell  ?  Matthew  V,  verse  26,  speaks  of  a  prison 
house  in  the  other  world  from  which  there  is  no  exit 
until  the  last  farthing  will  have  been  paid;  Heaven  is 
not  a  prison  house,  and  no  last  farthing  can  be  paid 
in  hell ;  therefore,  Matthew  must  refer  to  another  place. 
Call  it  what  you  please;  Catholics  call  it  Purgatory." 

Now  let  us  consider  Dr.  J.  Whitcomb  Brougher's 
arguments.  He  is  the  pastor  of  the  Temple  Baptist 
Church  of  Los  Angeles,  which  claims  to  have  one  of  the 
largest  congregations,  if  not  the  greatest  member  ship 
of  any  Baptist  Church  in  the  United  States.  On  Jan- 
uary 1,  1920,  I  commenced  the  New  Year  by  writing  to 
Dr.  Brougher,  and  I  quote  some  portions  of  the  letter 
herewith  in  order  that  my  readers  may  realize  that  I 
am  not  captious  or  unfair  in  asking  and  pressing  for  an 
opportunity  to  convince  my  clerical  friend  of  his  error 
of  judgment. 

[52] 


WHERE  Is  HEAVEN  ?  53 

"It  is  with  the  greatest  sincerity,  purity  of  motive 
and  enthusiasm  that  I  write  this  letter  to  you,  and  I 
do  trust  you  to  accept  the  thoughts  contained  here  in 
just  the  spirit  in  which  they  leave  me. 

"On  the  29th  of  last  September  I  sent  you  a  copy  of 
my  book,  '  Illustrious  Madmen  of  the  Ages/  and  I  trust 
you  have  read  it,  though  you  did  not  acknowledge  the 
receipt  of  the  book.  My  father  was  a  Presbyterian  min- 
ister, and  later  an  Evangelist,  and  I  have  been  brought 
up  with  every  advantage  of  a  Christian  home.  I  was  a 
member  of  Dr.  Locke 's  church  for  years,  but  I  felt  myself 
compelled  to  leave  the  Methodist  Church  on  account 
of  the  lack  of  intelligent  interpretation  regarding  the 
'after  life;'  this  knowledge  I  had  to  get  in  ways  that 
were  not  always  pleasant  to  me;  but  after  years  of  in- 
vestigation, reading  and  studying  evidence  of  phe- 
nomena that  have  happened  in  my  own  home,  I  NOW 
KNOW  that  we  live  on  after  the  change  called  death. 
I  heard  your  sermon  last  summer,  'Do  Spooks  walk  and 
talk?'  (Apparently  he  did  not  even  know  that  spooks 
are  not  actual  spirits).  You  said  NO!  I  say  YES!  I 
have  seen  spirit  forms  and  heard  spirit  voices;  and  I 
believe  that  those  Bible  stories  which  record  the  trances, 
dreams,  prophesy,  healing,  and  other  manifestations  are 
not  only  possible,  but  are  evidential  here  and  now.  Many 
of  the  noted  clergymen  of  our  country,  as  well  as  in 
Europe,  are  coming  into  the  light  of  knowledge,  and 
admitting  that  they  are  satisfied  that  we  live  on,  and 
on,  and  that  the  facts  of  Spiritualism  are  true. 

"In  the  sermon  that  you  preached  against  Spiritual- 
ism you  unknowingly  said  many  things  that  were  not 
true.  No  one  can  get  an  insight  into  the  'unseen,'  or 
into  the  great  spiritual  truths  of  life  in  a  few  weeks, 
months,  or  years.  The  knowledge  comes  only  after  years 
of  bodily  effort,  spiritual  self -searching,  and  the  sincere 
desire  of  the  soul  to  get  actual  proof. 

"I  believe  that  "the  fingers  of  a  man's  hand  wrote  on 
the  wall  in  Belshazzer's  palace."  I  believe  that  "Jesus, 


54          PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

Peter,  James  and  John  talked  with  Moses  and  Elias, 
who  had  been  dead  over  a  thousand  years/'  I  believe 
that  a  "Jacob's  Ladder  Dream  is  being  seen  by  millions 
of  Spiritualists  in  the  world  today,  and  that  the  angels 
are  Descending  as  well  as  Ascending."  If  God  is  "just 
the  same  today,"  and  your  Bible  is  true,  then  the  woman 
of  Endor  was  the  "medium"  who  brought  the  spirit  of 
Samuel  to  Saul  and  gave  him  a  true  message. 

"I  believe  also  that  'Christianity  Began  with  a  Dream.' 
Did  it  not? 

"Listen!  Math.  1-20,  'But  while  he  (Joseph)  thought 
on  these  things,  behold,  the  angel  of  the  Lord  appeared 
unto  him  IN  A  DREAM,  saying:  Joseph,  thou  son  of 
David,  fear  not  to  take  unto  thee,  Mary,  thy  wife;  for 
that  which  is  conceived  in  her  is  of  the  Holy  Ghost.' 

"I  believe  that  'Peter  in  Joppa  was  in  trance,  and  in 
his  vision  heard  the  words,  'Arise,  Peter,  Slay  and  eat.' 
I  believe  that  'Paul  spoke  with  tongues  and  prophesied.' 
I  believe  the  12th  chapter  of  1st  Corinthians,  which 
begins  with,  'Now  concerning  Spiritual  things  I  would 
not  have  you  ignorant.'  Heb.  1-14  reads:  'Are  they 
not  ALL  MINISTERING  SPIRITS,  sent  forth  to  min- 
ister for  them  that  shall  be  heirs  of  salvation. '  1st  John 
4-1  says:  Believe  NOT  every  spirit,  but  try  the  spirits, 
whether  they  are  of  God."  Then  there  must  be  good 
spirits  from  God,  as  well  as  evil  spirits.  Open  your 
mind  for  ONLY  the  BEST  to  manifest, — and  all  will  be 
well!  I  also  believe  that  'John  on  the  Isle  of  Patmos 
WAS  IN  THE  SPIRIT  on  the  Lord's  Day,  and  heard  a 
great  Voice.  Now,  Dr.  Brougher,  as  President  of  the 
Francis  Church  of  Truth,  I  hereby  extend  to  you  a 
most  cordial  invitation  to  attend  our  regular  services 
on  any  Tuesday  evening, — as  I  know  that  you  cannot 
come  on  Sunday  night, — to  see  for  yourself  that  we  do 
not  answer  questions  in  the  manner  that  YOU  said  we 
did !  That  Rev.  Geo.  Francis  works  simply  by  the  power 
of  Spirit  to  his  brain,  through  the  science  of  Psych- 
ometry,  merely  touching  any  article,  placed  on  a  table 


WHERE  Is  HEAVEN  ?  55 

by  the  people  as  they  come  in.  See  for  yourself  that 
there  is  no  "  switching, "  as  you  said  there  was.  All  is 
done  in  the  glare  of  electric  lights. 

"We  have  regular  church  service,  and  will  sing  your 
favorite  hymns.  You  will  be  welcome  to  our  church,  to 
occupy  a  seat  on  the  platform,  or  to  sit  as  an  investigator 
in  the  audience;  to  come  alone,  or  bring  a  delegation 
(and  that  would  suit  us  fine),  for  then  you  would  realize 
that  we  did  not  know  your  followers,  and  the  tests  would 
be  more  convincing.  Place  your  OWN  articles  on  the 
table,  where  they  will  remain  in  plain  view,  and  IN 
the  light.  Or,  write  a  question,  you  or  your  friends, 
place  it  on  the  table  yourself ;  get  one  of  the  independent 
messages,  without  the  aid  of  material  objects,  through 
Psychometry. 

' '  Come  and  see  for  yourself ;  surely  the  TRUTH  cannot 
be  harmful  to  you,  or  to  any  of  those  who  accompany 
you.  You  will  be  welcome,  whether  you  notify  us  or  not 
of  your  intended  presence.  We  will  reserve  seats  for 
you,  if  you  care  to  attend  and  avail  yourself  of  this 
opportunity,  either  publicly  or  privately,  to  prove  for 
all  time  that  the  spirits  of  the  so-called  dead  CAN  and 
DO  communicate  with  the  living  here,  and  now.  I  per- 
sonally write  this  letter  in  the  spirit  of  helpfulness,  as 
no  one  in  this  great  scheme  of  life  can  well  claim  infal- 
libility. I  think  that  you  should  know  these  facts! 

"Dr.  Russell  H.  Conwell,  pastor  of  the  great  Baptist 
church  in  Philadelphia,  has  had  the  courage  to  give  to 
the  world  the  story  of  how  he  conversed  with  the  spirit 
of  his  dead  wife,  who  had  passed  over  more  than  thirty 
years  ago.  He  proved  that  it  was  not  by  mental  telep- 
athy, and  that  it  was  not  the  power  of  the  Devil.  That 
she  maintained  her  identity,  her  memory,  and  was  alive 
in  a  world  of  progression  and  activity.  What  a  knowl- 
edge! 

1  *  I  wish  you  had  the  proof  that  I  have  had ;  also  that 
I  had  the  opportunity  to  sway  the  public  mind  that  you 
have.  Such  a  combination  would  do  a  great  work  for 


56         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

good,  for  the  Divine  Cause.  God's  work  here  on  earth 
would  sooner  be  established,  than  by  teaching  and 
preaching  about  something  you  have  not  thoroughly  in- 
vestigated. 

"I  now  leave  this  with  you,  and  expect  a  reply  to  this 
letter,  for  you  can  but  feel  that  it  is  written  in  the  spirit 
of  utmost  friendliness,  and  with  a  hope  that  you  will 
at  least  be  open  to  conviction  on  this  great  subject, 
which  is  now  taking  the  attention  of  the  greatest  minds 
on  the  planet  today.  I  wish  you  the  best  of  all  things, — 
greater  spiritual  light, — greater  insight  into  the  so-called 
'hidden*  things  of  life.  May  we  not  have  the  pleasure  of 
having  you  at  some  of  our  meetings  soon?  Let  me  hear 
from  you  on  this  matter. " 

I  received  no  reply  to  this  New  Year  letter  up  to  the 
28th  of  January,  1920,  on  which  date  I  wrote  again  as 
follows:  "Dear  Dr.  Brougher.  Some  time  ago  I  wrote 
you  a  letter  regarding  an  invitation  to  the  Francis 
Church  of  Truth,  Spiritualist,  in  the  Majestic  Theatre 
Building,  Los  Angeles,  Cal.  I  am  disappointed  at  not 
getting  a  reply.  I  want  an  answer  to  that  letter,  Dr. 
Brougher,  and  I  expect  it,  for  I  want  you  to  see  that  we 
do  not  answer  sealed  questions  in  the  manner  you  said 
we  did  in  your  sermon  on  'Do  spooks  walk  and  talk?' 
I  think  you  owe  it  to  the  principle  of  justice;  for  you 
were  certainly  unfair  (as  thousands  know  here  in  Los 
Angeles),  when  you  made  that  assertion,  and  I  also 
want  an  answer  to  those  questions  I  put  to  you.  If  you 
do  not  care  to  come  in  person,  please  send  a  personal 
representative,  or  a  delegation,  who  will  be  treated  with 
the  greatest  respect  and  cordiality;  let  him  or  them  see 
that  Mr.  Geo.  Francis,  the  pastor,  reads  by  the  Spirit, 
and  that  HE  DOES  NOT  have  the  audience  'Fixed'  in  the 
manner  you  acknowledged  having  arranged  with  the 
members  of  your  choir  the  night  you  preached  that  ser- 
mon against  spiritualism. 

"If  you  think  that  we  ARE  'fakes'  and  do  not  give  real 
messages,  do  not  get  en  rapport  with  the  loved  ones 


WHERE  Is  HEAVEN  ?  57 

passed  on  to  greater  activities,  and  that  WE  can  do 
NOTHING  without  a  'Fixed7  audience,  then  you  are  in 
a  position  to  extend  an  invitation  to  Rev.  George  Francis 
of  the  Francis  Church  of  Truth,  to  go  to  YOUR  church, 
at  any  time  you  suggest,  and  give  messages  and  tests 
from  your  platform!  We  are  prepared  to  accept  such 
an  invitation  as  we  hereby  extend  you  and  members  of 
your  church.  We  want  YOU  to  either  accept  it  or  come 
to  our  services  at  any  time  you  care  to,  and  without 
notifying  us,  if  you  wish  to  thus  safeguard  yourself. 

"Remember,  Dr.  Brougher,  this  is  sent  in  the  best 
spirit  and  with  the  kindliest  feelings,  but  with  A  BURN- 
ING DESIRE  FOR  THE  TRUTH.  What  say  you? 
We  await  with  interest  your  reply!  As  President  of 
the  church,  I  personally  extend  you  this  invitation,  and 
expect  you  to  take  action  of  some  kind  at  once.  Let  me 
know  just  where  you  stand.  Surely  the  truth  cannot 
hurt  you.  Sincerely  yours,  James  McGregor  Beatty." 

On  February  4,  1920,  I  received  the  following  letter 
from  Temple  Baptist  Church:  "My  dear  Mr.  Beatty. 
Your  letter  of  January  28  came  duly  to  hand.  Dr. 
Brougher  is  away  on  a  three  weeks'  vacation.  He  wanted 
me  to  say  that  he  would  be  glad  to  accept  your  invita- 
tion (he  does  not  say  which  one),  if  it  were  not  for 
the  fact  that  he  is  far  too  busy  at  present.  Thanking 
you  for  the  courtesy  of  the  invitation,  most  sincerely, 
Henry  Miles  Cook"  (Secy,  to  Dr.  Brougher). 

After  trying  to  see  Dr.  Brougher  several  times,  I  was 
informed  that  he  was  going  East  for  a  few  weeks,  so  I 
rested  until  his  return.  But  I  was  determined  to  get 
his  ultimatum,  and  I  did !  On  March  21,  1920,  I  wrote 
a  letter,  the  tenor  of  which  was:  "Dear  Dr.  Brougher. 
Am  very  glad  you  are  back  again  in  the  land  of  sunshine 
and  flowers,  as  I  have  waited  a  long  time  to  write  you 
again  about  the  engagement  I  am  so  anxious  for  you  to 
make  with  me,  as  set  forth  in  my  previous  letters,  regard- 
ing a  visit  to  our  services  on  the  8th  floor  of  the  Majestic 
Theatre  Building.  Your  last  letter  stated  that  you  would 


58         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

be  very  glad  to  accept  the  invitation  when  you  were  not 
so  busy,  so  I  am  writing  you  now,  'asking  that  you  set 
a  date  far  enough  ahead  that  you  are  sure  of  it,  and 
come  down  to  see  that  we  do  not  *  Carry  on'  as  you  said 
we  did! 

'  *  It  seems  very  strange  to  me  that  you  can  condescend 
to  appear  on  your  platform  with  Mr.  Cunning,  a  self- 
confessed  trickster,  and  publicly  advertised  'fake  me- 
dium,' and  still  refuse  to  come  to  a  church  where  we 
are  trying,  with  all  our  souls,  to  be  of  use  to  humanity ! 
I  was  in  the  audience  on  Thursday  evening  of  the  '  Cun- 
ning Week, '  when  HE  professed  to  expose  Spiritualism ; 
YOU  were  called  up  on  the  platform  to  amplify  this  ex- 
hibition of  exposing  Spiritualism  by  his  magical  tricks. 
He  was  a  trickster !  He  admitted  it !  He  is  still  fooling 
the  public!  And  he  apparently  pulled  the  wool  over 
your  eyes  (maybe  he  didn't). 

"It  may  be  of  interest  to  you  to  learn  that  since  the 
'Cunning'  farcical  expose,  our  hall  has  become  over- 
crowded; for  the  average  educated  layman  knew  just 
how  every  trick  was  accomplished !  I  saw  them  exposed 
twenty  years  ago!  Personally,  I  have  never  seen  such 
fakes  attempted  in  any  spiritualist  church  in  the  land. 
Come  to  our  services,  and  see  that  you  and  Cunning  did 
us  a  great  injustice  in  making  those  statements ;  you  cer- 
tainly did  us  no  actual  harm,  for  the  truth  will  stand 
out  forever ! 

"It  is,  I  claim,  a  proven  fact  that  all  live  after  they 
pass  out,  and  go  on  progressing  after  'death!'  Please 
do  not  make  any  more  remarks  about  OUR  methods  until 
you  have  personally  investigated  them.  We  are  ready 
and  open  at  all  times  to  have  you  search  our  methods 
and  investigate  in  every  way  possible,  and  I  hereby 
challenge  you,  and  your  statements  made  in  public !  As 
I  said  before,  this  is  done  in  the  kindliest  spirit  and  with 
only  the  best  intentions,  and  surely  the  truth  will  not 
hurt  you.  Thanking  you,  and  hoping  to  hear  from  you 
soon,  I  am  cordially  yours,  James  McGregor  Beatty." 


WHERE  Is  HEAVEN  ?  59 

This  brought  the  following  verbatim  letter  from  Dr. 
Brougher  himself,  dated  March  25,  1920 : 

"My  dear  Mr.  Beatty:  I  regret  very  much  that  I 
have  neither  the  time  nor  the  inclination  to  investigate 
FURTHER  the  subject  mentioned  in  your  letter  of 
March  21st.  I  am  too  busy  trying  to  help  people  who 
live  in  bodies  here  on  earth,  to  spend  my  time  MONKEY- 
ING with  the  Spirits  of  the  departed  dead.  I  have  no 
objection  to  your  doing  it  if  you  want  to,  BUT  I  HAVE 
NO  TIME  FOR  IT.  It  will  be  a  waste  of  paper  and 
postage  to  have  any  further  correspondence  in  regard 
to  this  matter.  Yours  most  sincerely,  J.  Whitcomb 
Brougher. " 

Thus  it  is,  my  orthodox  friends,  that  one  of  your  re- 
puted leaders,  pastor  of  one  of  the  largest  churches  in 
the  land,  excuses  himself  from  meeting  opponents  on 
the  ground  that  he  has  no  time  for  the  great  truths  that 
Jesus  laid  down  concerning  the  After  Life ;  no  time  for 
investigation  of  scientific  knowledge  as  to  the  condition 
of  the  soul  after  death! 

He  has  no  time  to  spend  "Monkeying"  with  the  spirits 
of  the  departed  dead !  Time,  however,  is  no  object  on  the 
opposition  side,  for  he  lends  his  platform,  and  by  his 
presence  patronizes  the  stage  tricks  of  an  acknowledged 
trickster,  when  showing  the  public,  how  he  posed  as  a 
"medium"  in  order  to  line  his  pockets  and  victimize 
credulous  minds.  The  Rev.  Dr.  is  apparently  willing 
to  seize  any  opportunity  to  prejudice  seekers  after  truth 
(who  might  wish  to  become  honest  investigators),  for 
fear  they  finally  become  Spiritualists. 

"Something,"  says  the  clergy,  "must  be  done  to  stem 
the  tide  of  unorthodoxy;  we  must  block  the  great  prog- 
ress that  Spiritualism  is  making  all  over  the  world ;  fake 
exposes  of  conjuring  tricks,  as  the  assumed  means  prac- 
ticed by  Spiritualists,"  is  the  plan  that  many  of  the 
clergy  are  taking.  It  is  obvious  to  the  theological  student 
that,  if  the  preachers  obliterate  all  the  spirit  records 
out  of  the  Bible,  there  will  not  be  enough  left  to  even 


60         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOB  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

define  a  "  Hell. "  It  is  extraordinary  that  they  still  stand 
by  a  personal  materialistic  God,  with  a  crown  and  a 
throne ;  amplified  with  the  threats  of  fire  and  brimstone, 
supervised  by  a  personal  devil,  with  tail,  horns  and  hoof 
— long  discarded  from  the  universe  by  advanced  theol- 
ogians and  students  of  Science — in  other  words,  the  doc- 
trine of  terrorizing  people  into  being  good;  stagnation, 
and  not  progression! 

Spiritualism  with  its  facts  dispels  the  dread  of  death 
by  giving  knowledge  of  the  after  life;  but  still  they 
stand  defiant,  rejecting  the  truth  which  WE  hold  is 
proven;  preferring,  for  interested  motives,  to  remain 
steadfast  to  the  old  pagan  theories  which  no  orthodox 
preacher  can  prove  to  be  true.  It  is  only  fair  to  ask 
that  they  give  us  proof  that  there  is  a  devil,  or  give 
proof  that  there  is  a  literal  hell,  burning  with  fire  and 
brimstone;  that  there  is  a  heaven,  where  all  the  saved 
will  stand  with  harps  and  sing,  and  sing,  and  sing,  for 
countless  millions  of  years,  and  I  will  admit  their  doc- 
trines. 

I  have  been  seeking  for  evidence  that  our  mothers  and 
fathers  are  still  conscious.  I  want  proof  that  Jesus  will, 
or  can,  forgive  their  earth  sins ;  that  they  will  NOT  suffer 
for  the  wrongs  they  may  have  done  here  on  earth. 

I  want  evidential  proof  that  this  world  is  only  about 
six  thousand  years  old ;  I  ask  that  these  preachers  give 
me  proof  that  the  earth  was  made  in  six  (of  our)  days. 
I  want  proof  that  sacrificial  blood  must  be  shed  before 
my  soul  can  be  saved;  and,  that  it  was  NECESSARY  that 
Jesus  die  for  my  sins, — hundreds  of  years  before  I  had 
committed  any. 

I  seek  to  have  it  proved  that  it  is  possible  for  the  evil 
doer  to  go  to  heaven  (and  be  happy)  by  allowing  an 
innocent  man  to  suffer  and  die  for  others'  sins.  Can 
any  preacher  give  me  certainty  as  to  everlasting  tor- 
ment ?  It  is  impossible  for  the  most  profound  preachers 
to  prove  these  assertions,  although  many  of  their  fol- 
lowers have  thoughtlessly  swallowed  them,  without  ques- 


WHERE  Is  HEAVEN  ?  61 

tion,  up  to  the  present  time.  Spiritualism  proves  there 
is  life  after  death;  an  active,  real,  conscious  existence, 
and  memory  of  the  past  life,  after  we  pass  beyond  this 
life  on  earth.  It  supplants  a  so-called  faith,  or  belief,  and 
substitutes  in  their  place — knowledge  and  proof;  it 
breaks  down  the  multitudinous  creeds  and  dogmas  of  the 
accepted  modern  churches,  and  refutes  the  sectarian 
teachings,  such  as  that  all  who  disagree  with  their  beliefs 
will  be  burned  in  everlasting  fire. 

The  orthodox  church  is  losing  its  power  to  hold  a 
whip  (of  terror)  over  the  person  who  has  the  courage 
to  stand  alone;  who  refuses  to  admit  something  he  can- 
not understand,  just  to  please  a  professional  teacher. 

History  relates  that  these  positive  preachers  have  con- 
sistently opposed  the  researches  of  science,  philosophy, 
and  every  other  movement  interfering  with  their  privi- 
leges, even  though  results  would  have  been  beneficial  to 
humanity.  They  have  thrown  mud  upon,  persecuted, 
prosecuted,  and  killed  by  the  thousands,  those  who  op- 
posed their  creeds  and  dogmas;  but  that  day  of  intol- 
erance, or  of  ignorance  is  past! 

I  wish  that  I  could  so  impress  everyone  of  my  readers 
with  one  thought,  and  that  is  to  READ  and  Pray,  so 
that  knowledge  might  burn  itself  into  their  conscious- 
ness for  all  time.  Read,  Study,  Know.  How  I  wish 
I  had  learned  that  many  years  ago! 

It  is  a  good  thing  that  Jesus  was  not  "too  busy"  to 
prove  spirit  return ;  He  was  not  too  busy  to  go  ' '  monkey- 
ing" with  the  spirits  of  the  dead.  If  he  had  not  lived 
and  fought,  Dr.  Brougher  would  not  have  a  peg  on 
which  to  hang  his  religion  today.  It  is  a  good  thing 
that  St.  Paul  found  time  to  investigate  ,and  prove  that 
we  live  again,  for  it  was  Paul  who  said,  "  Quench  not 
the  Spirit !  Despise  not  prophesying !  Prove  all  things ! 
Hold  fast  that  which  is  good." 

The  preacher  of  today  does  not  believe  in  PROVING 
anything,  unless  he  is  personally  interested.  He  will 
not  believe  in  anything  unless  he  knows  he  can  support 


62         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

it  by  some  old  musty  ecclesiastical  assertions.  Many  of 
them  already  KNOW  that  the  Spiritualist  organizations 
prove  their  assertions.  It  is  because  they  are  so  afraid 
of  the  truths  we  can  prove,  that  they  profess  to  believe 
the  Spiritualist  is  in  league  with  the  devil.  That  may 
scare  some  bigoted,  or  thoughtless  people,  but  daily  and 
hourly  the  thinkers  are  waking  up,  and  will  continue  to 
do  so,  for  God's  appointed  time  has  arrived. 

It  is  admitted  that  Jesus  found  time  to  go  with  Peter, 
James  and  John  to  the  Mount  of  Transfiguration  and 
there  converse  with  Moses  and  Elias,  both  recorded  as 
having  been  dead  over  a  thousand  years;  notwithstand- 
ing the  inspired  records,  these  positive  preachers  say  it 
can't  be  done!  Impossible! 

It  is  also  recorded  that  Peter,  in  a  trance,  heard  the 
Spirit  say  unto  him, ' '  Behold  three  men  seek  thee.  Arise, 
doubting  nothing,  for  I  have  sent  them."  Will  the 
preachers  be  ready  to  say  as  in  Acts  26-19,  "Where- 
upon, Oh,  King  Agrippa,  I  was  not  disobedient  unto  the 
heavenly  vision." 

Let  me  now  refer  to  a  letter  I  addressed  to  Dr.  Wm. 
G.  Mills,  pastor  of  St.  Paul's  Presbyterian  church,  Los 
Angeles.  "Dear  Brother:  Last  evening  I  attended  your 
church  to  hear  a  special  sermon  on  'Is  communication 
possible  between  the  dead  and  the  living,'  which  dis- 
course dealt  only  with  what  you  personally  thought 
about  it.  When  you  ask  the  question,  'Is  communica- 
tion possible'  am  not  I  entitled  to  an  analytical  reply? 
I  wish  to  differ  with  you  when  you  say  that  Spiritual- 
ism is  only  a  matter  of  opinion.  I  doubt  that  you  really 
believe  THAT  yourself.  Personal  opinion  cannot  inter- 
fere with,  or  change,  Divine  Law;  it  would  be  just  as 
sensible  for  you  to  profess  that  wireless  or  the  radio 
phone  could  be  altered  by  a  mere  expression  of  per- 
sonal opinion.  No  one's  individual  theories  can  change 
the  facts  of  phenomena  that  are  emanating  from  the 
action  of  unknown  laws  governed  by  the  natural  forces. ' ' 

"You  stated  that  there  was  no  case  on  record  in  our 


WHERE  Is  HEAVEN  ?  63 

Old  Bible,  which  proved  communication  to  be  possible. 
You  at  once  refuted  this,  by  telling  about  the  Trans- 
figuration on  the  Mount,  and  the  next  Sunday  preached 
on  the  "Witch  of  Endor."  (The  Bible  refers  to  the 
Woman  of  Endor),  thus  dealing  with  another  case  of 
REAL  spirit  return  during  which  the  wicked  King  Saul 
was  permitted  to  talk  with  the  spirit  of  Samuel  the 
prophet. 

''You  also  expressed  an  opinion  that  if  anyone  could 
obtain  favors  from  God  it  would  have  been  King  David, 
for  he  was  recorded  as  a  man  of  God,  and  you  instanced 
David's  loss  of  his  child,  when  he  stated  he  would  GO 
to  his  child,  and  not  the  child  come  back  to  him;  upon 
this,  amongst  other  statements,  you  base  your  assertions 
that  communication  with  the  dead  is  impossible.  David 
may  have  been  a  man  after  God's  own  heart  in  many 
ways,  but  the  Psalms  and  other  records  of  his  life  prove 
that  King  David  was  as  fallible  as  many  of  the  men 
living  today.  Many  Bible  students  will  recall  that  he 
had  General  Joab  place  Uriah,  a  soldier,  in  the  front 
line  trenches  to  make  sure  he  would  never  come  back,  as 
King  David  was  in  love  with  the  soldier 's  beautiful  wife. 

"You  stated  that  you  were  glad  that  your  parents 
could  not  know  of  your  trials  and  troubles  here  on  earth, 
as  they  were  safe  with  Jesus;  the  inference  being  that 
they  cared  NOTHING  for  those  they  had  loved  on  earth. 
Christ  taught  the  reverse!  Strangely  enough,  you  ex- 
pressed an  opinion  to  a  certain  'Alex'  that  you  thought 
his  wife  would  not  GO  very  far  from  the  gates  of  heaven, 
but  that  she  would  be  there  to  greet  him  when  he  passed 
over;  evidently  you  assumed  that  she  would  know  of 
his  death,  and  that  such  a  meeting  would  be  possible, 
by  reason  of  some  kind  of  communication  existent  be- 
tween the  two  worlds;  in  this  case  you  gave  Alex  true 
spiritual  comfort  by  teaching  him  real  Spiritualism, 
and — to  use  your  own  words — '  Saving  him  to  God. ' 

"After  twelve  years  in  the  Presbyterian  church,  I  be- 
gan investigating  '  Life  after  Death, '  and  having  done  so 


64         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOB  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

for  over  twenty  years,  I  have  proved  that  we  do  not 
lose  our  identity,  or  our  memory,  when  we  leave  the 
mortal  body;  that  we  become  ONE  with  God,  by  our 
individual  desire  only,  whether  it  be  in  this  life,  or  some 
to  follow.  The  scientific  side  of  this  question  is  settled 
with  many  truly  conscientious  and  thinking  people,  for 
it  has  been  scientifically  proven,  as  clearly  as  anything 
supernormal  can  be  proven.  Skeptics,  who  care  to  in- 
vestigate, can  also  prove  it  beyond  the  shadow  of  a  doubt. 
I  have  never  been  in  a  spiritualist  service  in  my  life 
where  such  services  were  held  in  the  dark,  as  you  stated ! 
You  warned  your  hearers  not  to  go  to  Los  Angeles 
Street — 'that  dark,  disreputable  part  of  town' —  to  con- 
sult mediums;  but  there  is  no  Spiritualistic  Church 
there !  I  ought  to  know,  for  I  was  National  Secretary  of 
the  Independent  Spiritualist  Association  of  America  for 
some  time,  and  am  fully  informed  as  to  the  location  of 
their  churches. 

"Let  me  inform  you  that  Spiritualists  preach  on  the 
12th  chapter  of  1st  Corinthians,  a  portion  of  the  Bible 
the  orthodox  clergyman  does  not  discuss.  Why!  You 
said  you  believed  the  good  old  book,  the  Bible  (and  ad- 
monished us  to  do  so),  therefore  you  believe  that  'The 
spirit  of  the  Lord  caught  away  Philip ! '  Do  you  believe 
that  'God  is  a  Spirit?'  They  that  worship  Him  must 
worship  Him  in  SPIRIT  AND  IN  TRUTH.  Do  you 
believe  that  'John  on  the  Isle  of  Patmos,  heard  a  great 
voice  behind  him,'  and  'that  he  was  in  the  spirit  on  the 
Lord's  Day?'  If  not,  then  you  do  not  accept  the  Bible 
as  the  inspired  Holy  Word  of  God.  Probably  you  will 
say:  'How  can  I  believe,  for  I  have  never  seen  these 
spiritual  manifestations. ' 

Millions  have  not  seen  the  great  lakes,  nor  the  planet 
Mars,  or  the  telescope  that  discovered  it.  You  probably 
have  not  seen  Africa,  China,  Australia  or  Paris;  but 
you  admit  all  these  exist.  Ignorance,  whether  in  the 
realms  of  Science,  Art,  or  Theology,  is  not  culpable  so 
long  as  it  is  modest  in  permitting  others  a  greater  knowl- 


WHERE  Is  HEAVEN  ?  65 

edge  than  it  possessed.  It  is  said  two  thousand  years 
after  the  death  of  that  great  spirit  Jesus,  who  blessed 
mankind  by  utilizing  all  the  spiritualistic  manifestations 
now  being  re-discovered  by  the  honest  and  true  spirit- 
ulistic  mediums,  which  lead  us  to  a  better  life  here,  and 
absolutely  prove  a  life  hereafter,  that  you  still  go  on 
preaching  continually  against  those  who  believe  in  the 
existence  of  what  you  have  been  praying  for — eternal 
life ;  telling  your  followers  in  the  interim  that  they  will 
have  it,  'in  God's  good  time/  Hoping  to  hear  from  you 
in  just  the  spirit  in  which  this  leaves  me,  I  am  most 
sincerely,  James  McGregor  Beatty."  Many  weeks  later 
I  received  the  following  letter  from  Dr.  Mills: 

'  *  My  dear  sir :  Your  letter  to  me  came  duly  to  hand. 
I  have  been  so  very  busy  that  I  have  been  unable  to 
answer  it  until  the  present.  And  even  now,  it  is  likely 
that  you  will  think  I  do  not  give  it  the  time  and  thought 
that  it  deserves.  Let  me  say  first  that  you  are  quite 
right  in  saying,  in  my  sermon,  that  I  dealt  with  only  what 
the  Bible  said  upon  the  theme.  And  with  good  reason, 
as  the  Bible  is  the  only  authority  upon  the  subject. 

"I  can  see  from  the  tone  of  your  letter,  as  well  as 
from  what  is  here  and  there  said,  that  you  think  dif- 
ferently. Possibly  Lodge,  Doyle  or  Stead  stand  higher 
in  your  estimation  as  authorities.  But  let  me  say,  they 
do  not  with  the  world,  no  more  than  they  do  with  me. 
ALL  that  is  for  the  welfare  of  Man  to  know  of  the  future 
is  revealed  in  the  Bible  and  the  Saviour  of  my  life 
speaks  to  me  from  it.  My  brother,  the  one  great  need  of 
any  man's  life  is  the  indwelling  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  who 
comes  into  the  life  of  any  man  by  yielding  his  will  to 
.Jesus  Christ.  When  we  believe  thus  in  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  he  saves  us  and  we  have  everything  in  Him. 
We  do  not  need  communications  from  the  *  Spirits. '  We 
have  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  need  not  that  any  man,  living 
or  dead,  should  teach  us.  He  teaches  us  through  the 
Bible.  'If  any  man  is  willing  to  do  His  will,  he  shall 
know  of  the  doctrine. '  What  is  needed  is  a  better  knowl- 


66          PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

edge  of  the  Book  and  a  deeper  acquaintance  with  Jesus. 
I  note  what  you  say  about  the  spirit  in  which  your  let- 
ter is  written,  and  seem  to  dread  lest  your  letter  should 
make  me  angry,  and  that  I  should  forget  I  am  a  Christ- 
ian. Not  at  all,  my  Brother,  not  at  all.  Your  letter 
and  MANY  others  never  ruffle  me  in  the  least,  and  I  can 
truly  say  that  for  all  men  everywhere,  and  among  them 
my  hearers  of  the  night  of  July  13th,  I  have  nothing 
but  the  kindliest  regards.  Cordially  yours,  W.  G.  Mills. ' ' 

It  is  evident  that  this  pastor  evaded  my  questions  by 
stating  that  all  that  is  needed  to  be  known  to  man  is 
revealed  in  the  Bible,  ignoring  or  rejecting  all  its  proofs 
of  life  after  death;  all  its  records  of  dreams,  visions, 
trances  and  communications  of  every  description.  There 
is  certainly  no  real  satisfaction,  sound  argument,  or  evi- 
dence of  knowledge  of  facts  to  be  gleaned  from  this  let- 
ter. Rev.  Mills,  however,  had  the  courtesy  to  answer  my 
letter  and  to  maintain  his  stand,  even  though  unable  to 
support  his  preaching  with  facts.  I  believe  this  gentle- 
man, however,  to  be  sincere  in  his  profession,  and  work- 
ing to  the  best  of  his  knowledge  to  spread  the  light  so 
far  as  it  is  given  to  him  to  explain  traditional  dogma, 
but  the  sad  part  of  it  is,  that  many  preachers  do  not 
desire  to  obtain  more  light,  or,  if  they  do,  they  are  afraid 
to  admit  it. 

Now  let  us  consider  what  a  Congregational  minuter 
thinks  about  communication  with  the  dead: 

Dr.  Carl  S.  Patton,  pastor  of  the  First  Congregational 
Church,  Los  Angeles,  Cal.,  said  in  a  recent  sermon  on 
the  "Letters  of  a  Living  Dead  Man,"  by  Elsa  Barker, 
formerly  of  Los  Angeles,  "The  strangest  thing  about 
such  books  is  that  people  buy  them  and  read  them,  when 
there  are  newspapers  and  magazines  so  easily  obtained. ' ' 
He  called  attention  to  the  "Puerile  and  inconsequential 
nature  of  them"  and  said:  "When  the  dead  DO  speak 
to  the  living,  I  say  that  the  dead  OUGHT  to  say  something 
worthy  of  the  dead,  and  of  some  moment  to  the  living." 


WHERE  Is  HEAVEN  ?  67 

Evidently  he  has  not  read  much  along  the  line  of 
Spiritualism.  He  has  not  read  Andrew  Jackson  Davis' 
beautiful  "Harmonial  Philosophy,"  nor  the  works  of 
dear  old  Dr.  Peebles.  All  of  them  wonderful  books. 
He  has  simply  followed  the  old,  undeveloped  teachings 
of  bygone  centuries  and  has  not  taken  the  time  to  think 
for  himself  on  the  wonderful  spiritual  philosophy  that 
God  has  allowed  to  be  found;  some  problems  explained 
by  keen  investigators,  others  by  spiritualists.  Following 
an  antique  lead,  he  has  walked  along  the  sectarian  rut 
instead  of  using  his  God-sent  faculties  of  research,  or 
the  talents  which,  according  to  Jesus  Christ,  were  given 
mankind  for  the  special  purpose  of  self-development.  "We 
do  not  give  our  children  one  class  of  books  only,  but 
gradually  teach  them  to  study  along  advancing  lines, 
until  their  minds  are  ready  to  progress  onward.  Larger 
children,  if  we  read  the  laws  of  God  aright,  are  also  to 
train  their  minds  until  they  can  judge  the  value  of  their 
preliminary  instruction,  and  are  fitted  mentally  to 
understand  the  truth  contained  within  and  beyond  their 
range  of  studies. 

In  regard  to  Dr.  Patton's  statement  as  to  the  inconse- 
quential nature  of  the  messages  given,  let  us  note  here 
what  Dr.  Hyslop,  Secretary  of  the  American  Society  for 
Psychical  Research,  says  about  THAT  kind  of  message. 
Let  us  take  this  statement  from  one  of  those  "  easily 
obtained  magazines"  Dr.  Patton  mentioned  in  his  ser- 
mon. Dr.  Hyslop,  in  the  American  Magazine  for  April, 
1920,  says :  *  '  There  is  only  ONE  thing  that  should  make 
us  believe  in  the  existence  of  spirits.  That  is  for  them 
to  give  us  proof  of  their  personal  identity.  And  the  only 
way  in  which  this  personal  identity  can  be  proven  is  for 
an  alleged  spirit  to  tell  us  facts  about  himself  when  he 
was  alive.  Information  that  pretends  to  be  about  the 
future  world  is  no  proof  at  all,  because  you  can't  verify 
it  NOW  !  Information  about  this  world,  is  no  proof  that 
it  comes  from  a  spirit — unless  the  spirit  identifies  him- 
self. This  is  the  reason  the  scientific  investigator  pays 


68          PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

SPECIAL  ATTENTION  TO  TRIVIAL  STATEMENTS 
IN  ALLEGED  SPIRIT  COMMUNICATIONS,  FOR 
THESE  ARE  THE  THINGS  THAT  WE  CAN  TRY 
TO  VERIFY,  AND,  IF  THEY  ARE  VERIFIED, 
THEY  HELP  TO  PROVE  THE  PERSONAL  IDEN- 
TITY OF  THE  SPIRIT. 

"For  example,  suppose  you  go  to  a  medium,  and  she 
tells  you  that  your  father  wishes  to  communicate  with 
you.  If  she  then  launches  into  an  account  (supposed 
to  be  coming  from  your  father),  of  conditions  in  the 
next  world,  you  cannot  check  up  that  information  and 
prove  that  it  is  true.  YOU  don't  know  anything  about 
the  next  world.  IF  HIS  ALLEGED  SPIRIT  TELLS 
YOU  NOTHING  ELSE,  YOU  HAVE  NO  PROOF 
THAT  HE  HAD  ANYTHING  TO  DO  WITH  IT.  HE 
MUST  TELL  YOU  THINGS  ABOUT  THIS  WORLD, 
AND  ABOUT  HIS  LIFE  IN  THIS  WORLD,  SO  THAT 
YOU  CAN  PROVE  THAT  THEY  ARE  TRUE,  AND 
THAT  THEY  COULD  COME  ONLY  FROM  HIM. 

"If  an  alleged  spirit,  who  claimed  to  be  your  father, 
told  you  that  on  December  16,  1889,  he  bought  a  copy 
of  Emerson's  Ks^ix  -.  wrote  his  name  and  the  date  on  the 
fly-leaf,  and  sent  it  to  his  cousin,  George,  in  Sacramento ; 
if  this  fact  was  previously  unknown  to  you,  or  to  the 
medium;  and  if  you  write  to  your  California  relatives, 
whom  you  may  have  never  seen,  and  ask  if  such  a  book 
is  in  existence,  and  if  you  later  receive  a  letter  saying 
that  the  cousin  mentioned  is  dead,  but  after  considerable 
search  the  book  described  has  been  found  in  a  box  in  the 
attic,  then  you  would  have  something  that  ought  to  be 
considered  evidential." 

So  these  efforts  to  be  contentious  can  be  easily  answered 
by  a  rational,  unprejudiced  student,  possessed  of  a  sin- 
cere and  never-ceasing  desire  to  investigate,  and  to  prove 
the  truth  of  Spirit  Return.  If  we  can  only  get  the 
clergy  to  be  fair  to  the  Spiritualist,  and  carry  out  the 
Apostolic  precepts,  "Come  let  us  reason  together,"  and 


WHERE  Is  HEAVEN  ?  69 

"Prove  all  things,"  incorporated  into  their  theological 
creeds;  in  place  of  spending  their  little  span  of  earth 
time  in  arguments  as  to  whether  they  shall  retain  the 
words  "The  Holy  Catholic  Church"  in  the  Apostles' 
Creed,  we  shall  have  advanced  God's  kingdom  to  the 
great  advantage  of  humanity. 

It  seems  astonishing  to  reflect  upon  when  one  hears 
the  clergy  read  the  creed  in  church,  wherein  they  sol- 
emnly aver,  "I  believe  in  the  Communion  of  Saints," 
and  then  proceed  to  stultify  themselves ;  for,  as  recorded 
in  this  boo^,  many  positive  preachers  state  that  they  do 
not  believe  in  any  such  thing  as  communion  with  de- 
parted spirits.  Many  of  them  have  repeatedly  affirmed 
from  their  rostrums,"  There  has  not  been  any  scientific 
demonstration  of  a  future  life."  "There  is  no  proof  of 
any  communication  whatsoever  between  this  and  any 
other  world."  "There  has  never  been  a  genuine  mes- 
sage from  the  so-called  spirit  world."  Can  they  recon- 
cile this,  or  explain  what  they  mean  when  they  say  with 
much  apparent  reverence  that  they  "believe  in  the  com- 
munion of  saints?" 

Again,  whilst  reciting  the  Apostles'  creed,  all  orthodox 
preachers  confess  they  believe  '  *  that  Jesus  sitteth  on  the 
right  hand  of  God,  the  Father  Almighty"  (a  statement 
which  they  cannot  prove),  and  also,  "The  communion  of 
saints,"  or  in  good  old  English,  "Communication  of 
Spirit,"  which  we  claim  is  proven;  then  immediately 
they  proceed  to  deny  their  own  affirmation  of  faith,  and 
preach  sermons  on  the  subject  asserting  that  such  com- 
munication is  as  yet  an  impossibility.  Why  all  this  side- 
stepping of  such  a  vital  religious  principle?  When  will 
God  send  to  earth  a  real  leader  to  preach  the  purest 
teachings  within  the  walls  of  orthodoxy? 

We  need  a  preacher  who  will  systematically  eliminate 
the  sectarian  dogmas  and  creeds,  replacing  them  with 
the  truly  Divine  doctrines  of  Christ,  and  practical  serv- 
ice to  mankind  at  large. 


70         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

We  sorely  need  intellectual  men;  brave  men;  an 
Ingersoll,  a  Paine,  a  Voltaire,  a  Hume  or  a  Luther.  The 
orthodox  church  surely  needs  a  Roger  Williams;  men 
like  Theodore  Parker  and  Beecher,  or  another  Abbot. 
The  time  has  passed  however  for  Intolerance,  Ignorance 
or  Insanity  to  rule  religion  as  in  the  past;  we  can  get 
along  very  well  without  another  leader  who  would  emu- 
late the  deeds  of  John  Calvin,  one  of  the  founders  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church,  who  caused  Dr.  Servetus,  a 
learned  monk,  to  be  publicly  burned  alive  when  Calvin 
was  victor  in  a  theological  debate  with  Servetus,  regard- 
ing the  doctrines  of  Martin  Luther.  Calvin's  only  com- 
ment was,  that  he  wanted  him  beheaded,  not  burned. 

A  typical  leader,  to  my  mind,  is  one  who  studies  the 
natural  laws,  for  the  good  of  the  church  of  the  future; 
one  who  teaches  the  views  expressed  by  the  Rev.  Charles 
L.  Tweedale,  F.  R.  G.  S.,  Vicar  of  Weston,  Yorkshire, 
who  says,  "It  is  idle  for  the  church  to  raise  the  'DEVIL' 
cry,  as  she  vainly  does,  and  say  that  the  modern  evi- 
dence of  the  spirit  world  are  devil  impersonations.  If 
so,  what  proof  has  the  modern  church  that  the  appear- 
ances to  the  prophets  and  the  appearances  of  the  risen 
Christ  were  not  also  tricks  of  impersonating  devils?  She 
has  not  a  rap. 

"In  vain  does  the  church  maintain  that  it  is  unlawful 
and  wicked  to  enter  into  communication  with  the  spirit 
world  in  the  face  of  Daniel  9,  20  to  27,  and  Daniel  10. 
3  and  12,  and  so  on.  Let  the  church — Roman,  Angelican 
and  Noncomformist,  take  heed  of  this  one  fact  before  it 
is  too  late ;  Ancient  and  modern  psychic  phenomena  stand 
or  fall  together.  If  there  are  no  angels,  no  visions,  no 
spirit  communications  now,  then  there  never  were  any, 
and  revealed  religion  is  a  humbug  and  a  fraud." 

There  is  a  profound,  incontrovertible  truth  in  the 
above  statement.  If  the  modern  preacher  wishes  to 
obtain  and  maintain  the  confidence  of  the  average  think- 
ing man  and  woman  who  attends  his  church,  the  less  he 
has  to  say  about  the  devil  in  solving  its  sectarian  prob- 


WHERE  Is  HEAVEN  ?  71 

lems,  the  more  likely  he  is  to  retain  the  personal  respect 
of  those  rational  human  beings  who  form  his  congrega- 
tion, and  the  better  it  will  be  for  all  concerned.  Also 
sooner  shall  we  arrive  at  some  spiritual  structure  upon 
which  we  can  place  our  feet  as  on  a  rock  of  truth  and 
reason.  If  the  church  is  seeking  Truth,  it  is  certainly 
its  duty  to  apply  itself  to  the  study  of  " psychical"  re- 
search in  the  effort  to  solve  the  many  unknown  mysteries 
of  the  Divine  religion  of  our  Creator.  They  would  then 
learn  to  join  investigating  hands  with  those  who  are 
fast  convincing  the  world  that  there  is  no  actual  death. 
It  has  been  left  to  laymen  and  outsiders  to  produce  such 
evidence  and  to  satisfy  mankind  that  life  beyond  the 
grave  is  a  proven  fact.  There  is,  however,  no  reason,  so 
far  as  we  are  concerned,  to  prevent  the  various  churches 
joining  in  friendly  rivalry,  and  so  working  in  unison 
with  spiritualists  in  the  endeavor  to  instruct  mankind 
and  fit  them  to  pass  through  the  portals  of  death,  in 
spite  of  the  fact  that  many  know  so  little  of  the  life 
beyond. 

There  are  plenty  of  facts  for  all  to  learn,  and  innum- 
erable opportunities  to  apply  our  knowledge,  when 
acquired,  for  the  uplifting  of  mankind  and  in  the  serv- 
ice of  humanity,  by  teaching  these  newly  discovered 
truths;  also  in  research  for  the  still  greater  revelation 
that  will  surely  come  down  through  the  years. 

This  is  the  age  of  Science  and  the  almost  daily  dis- 
coveries in  the  realms  of  nature  justify  us  in  consid- 
ering the  possibilities  that  Scientists  possess  for  extend- 
ing our  knowledge  of  what,  for  want  of  a  better  term, 
we  know  as  Psychic  laws.  The  recent  war  has  led  to 
investigation  of  etherial  conditions.  In  this  sphere,  Mar- 
coni did  wonders ;  Edison  is  known  as  a  wizard.  These 
experts  are  more  generally  known  to  the  public,  but 
hundreds  of  learned  men  are  also  developing  in  their 
laboratories  wonders  that  will  far  exceed  the  wireless 
or  the  phonograph.  That  other  worlds  beyond  may  be 
investigated  by  delicate  instruments  is  not  beyond  their 


72          PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

conception  today.  New  natural  laws  are  being  discov- 
ered. New  theories  promulgated.  Fields  of  research 
undreamed  of  a  few  years  ago  are  now  being  actively 
studied.  Brain  activity  appears  to  have  been  recently 
stimulated  by  the  Creator.  May  we  not  assume  that  the 
present  is  God's  appointed  time  for  mankind  to  follow 
the  Christ  teaching,  "Seek  and  ye  shall  find."  It  is 
pertinent  to  our  consideration  of  Life  after  Death  to 
briefly  study  the  subject  of  Vibrations,  for  the  theory 
of  most  spiritualists  is  that  by  this  means  we  are  the 
better  enabled  to  obtain  results,  and  thereby  prove  that 
the  so-called  dead  are  actually  only  transplanted  fo  sonic 
other  sphere. 

Sir  J.  J.  Thomson,  England's  greatest  authority  on 
the  atom,  gives  us  a  picture  of  vibratory  energy.  lie 
tells  us  that  the  atomic  energy  stored  in  an  ounce  of 
chlorine  "is  about  the  amount  of  work  required  to  k-  •  p 
the  Mauretania  going  at  full  speed  for  a  week,"  and 
that  the  splitting  up  of  the  atoms  of  any  known  sub- 
stance would  involve  enormous  transformations  of 
energy.  In  fact,  the  explosions  of  the  atoms  in  a  few 
pounds  of  earth  matter  might  be  sufficient  to  shatter  a 
continent.  Sir  Oliver  Lodge  tells  that  "the  time  will 
come  when  some  form  of  atomic  energy  will  take  the 
place  of  coal  as  a  source  of  power,"  and  he  almost  re- 
joices that  we  do  not  now  know  how  to  release  it,  for  he 
adds,  ' '  I  hope  that  the  human  race  will  not  discover  how 
to  use  this  energy  until  it  has  developed  brains  rnou_rl> 
to  use  it  properly,  because,  if  the  discovery  is  made  by 
the  wrong  people  this  planet  would  be  unsafe." 

I  might  repeat  here  a  thought  given  me  by  Prof.  Ed- 
gar Lucien  Larkin,  Director  of  the  Mount  Lowe  Astro- 
nomical Observatory  on  Mt.  Lowe,  California.  He 
pointed  out  that  "Experimental  Science  is  not  yet  300 
years  of  age ;  but,  that  the  so-called  occult  science  has 
been  studied  for  at  least  50,000  years,  and  that  most  of 


WHERE  Is  HEAVEN  ?  73 

the  old  philosophers  were  aware  of  a  force,  or  energy, 
whose  existence  has  not  yet  been  re-discovered  by  mod- 
ern scientific  instruments. "  "  The  coming  race, ' '  he  said, 
'  *  would  rediscover,  or  at  least  become  aware  of  the  exist- 
ence of  this  mighty,  unknown  power.  When  humanity 
is  able  to  appreciate  it,  this  God-given  wisdom  may  be 
released,  but  it  is  very  improbable  that  this  knowledge 
will  be  attained  under  existing  conditions,  for  this  force 
could  be  used  for  evil,  and  even  to  annihilate  entire 
nations." 

In  his  book,  "The  Matchless  Altar  of  the  Soul,"  he 
writes:  "The  passage  of  solid  matter  through  matter; 
the  passage  of  a  glass  of  water  through  thick  cloth; 
these,  and  a  hundred  more  such  phenomena,  so-called, 
but  really  natural  and  now  daily  occurring,  are  all  due 
to  a  higher  phase  of  electricity,  the  electronic  state 
known  to  adepts,  but  not  yet  discovered  by  science  in 
the  use  of  any  kind  of  instrument.  The  reader  must  be 
convinced  that  no  such  thing  as  a  miracle  can  exist." 

When  we  realize  the  wonderful  natural  phenomena 
which  are  actually  taking  place  daily,  under  our  very 
eyes,  who  can  venture  to  predict  what  discovery  shall 
come  next?  The  church  claims  that  for  two  thousand 
years  God  has  not  spoken  to  suffering  humanity.  They 
are  that  stiff-necked,  stubborn  generation  that  constantly 
refuses  to  accept  the  CONDITIONS,  or  follow  the  means 
whereby  God  makes  His  will  known;  and  they  refuse 
to  believe  the  possibility  even  today,  yet  claim  that 
they  believe  everything  recorded  as  having  happened  two 
thousand  years  ago.  Creeds  and  dogmas  are  therefore 
responsible  for  much  that  enervates  or  tends  to  stagnate 
the  human  mind. 

Positive  preachers  say  they  believe  the  Bible  to  be 
the  Holy  Word  of  God,  but  apparently  forget  that  it 
was  inspired,  from  time  to  time,  and  collated  by  the 
utilization  of  men  of  the  psychic  type;  the  Bible  came 
into  existence  by  spirit  inspiration,  and  the  prophets, 
or  seers,  saw  and  heard  what  is  recorded  therein.  Most 


74          PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

preachers  will  tell  you  that  "God  is  love,"  but  insist 
that  He  ordered  the  killing  of  the  first-born  of  Egypt, 
which  meant  that  every  house  in  the  land  mourned  for 
its  children;  its  best  beloved!  They  are  not  consistent; 
for,  though  the  Bible  makes  the  definite  statement,  they 
will  refuse  to  believe  that  "your  sons  and  your  daugh- 
ters shall  prophesy,  and  your  young  men  shall  see  vis- 
ions, and  your  old  men  shall  dream  dreams. " 

They  profess  to  believe  the  tragic  story  told  in  the 
15th  Chapter  of  1st  Samuel,  which  reads:  "Thus,  said 
the  Lord  of  Hosts,  I  remember  that  which  Amelek  did 
to  Israel,  how  he  laid  wait  for  him  in  the  way,  when  he 
came  up  from  Egypt.  Go  now  and  smite  Amelek  and 
utterly  destroy  all  that  they  have,  and  spare  them  not. 
BUT  SLAY  BOTH  MAN  AND  WOMAN,  INFANT 
AND  SUCKLING,  OX  AND  SHEEP,  CAMEL  AND 
ASS." 

Yet  they  will  utterly  deny  the  possibility  of  spirits, 
or  those  who  once  lived  in  our  midst,  having  power  to 
strengthen  or  comfort  us  by  their  prophesy  (in  spirit 
messages)  today:  despite  the  verses  we  read  in  1st  Cor- 
inthians, 14th  Chapter.  "Follow  after  charity,  and 
desire  spiritual  gifts,  but  rather  that  ye  shall  proplu -sy. 
He  that  prophesieth  speaketh  unto  men  to  edification, 
and  exhortation,  and  comfort.  Wherefore,  brethren, 
covet  to  prophesy,  and  forbid  not  to  speak  with  tongu«-s. 

Despite  their  denunciations  of  Spiritualism,  and  the 
denials  of  its  phenomena  by  the  Methodist  church,  listen 
to  the  following  passages  (which  are  true  spiritual  1st  it- 
teachings),  written  by  Mrs.  J.  H.  Knowles,  and  ex- 
tracted from  the  "Home  Department  Quarterly"  for 
January,  February,  March,  1920.  This  magazine  is  pub- 
lished by  the  Methodist  Book  Concern,  with  offices  in 
nine  of  the  largest  cities  of  America:  "Shall  we  know 
each  other  there?  The  disciples  knew  Jesus  after  His 
death  and  resurrection.  MOSES  AND  ELIAS  HAD 
NOT  LOST  THEIR  IDENTITY,  WHEN  THEY  CAME 
FROM  HEAVEN  TO  TALK  WITH  JESUS  ON  THE 


WHERE  Is  HEAVEN  ?  75 

MOUNT,  THOUGH  THEY  HAD  BEEN  THERE 
HUNDREDS  OF  YEARS,"  she  writes,  "here  are 
many  mansions  in  the  Father 's  house — how  wide  apart 
as  we  count  space,  I  do  not  know;  but  if  we  can  flash 
messages  around  the  world  in  a  few  seconds,  I  am  sure 
there  will  be  ways  to  communicate  with  each  other  over 
there,  so  there  will  never  be  any  sense  of  separation.  I 
will  be  I,  and  you  will  be  you." 

Pure  spiritualism,  as  we  conceive  it  to  be,  and  that  is 
being  handed  to  the  Methodists  every  month  in  the  year. 
I  have  studied  that  Quarterly  for  years,  and  I  have 
read  hundreds  of  similar  passages.  These  excerpts  are 
fine — and  also  true — but  how  can  this  church,  which  ad- 
mits the  truth  of  those  teachings  by  their  publication 
in  an  organ  of  Methodism,  deny  the  same  truth  as  now 
formulated  by  Spiritualism? 

Now  see  how  Mrs.  Knowles  distorts,  in  true  Meth- 
odistic  spirit,  what  the  Bible  says  about  the  vision  of 
Peter  in  Joppa.  She  writes:  "Peter  went  up  on  the 
housetop  to  pray.  I  have  no  doubt  that  he  asked  the 
Lord  to  direct  him  where  to  go  and  what  to  do,  for  that 
would  be  the  natural  thing  for  a  sincere  man  like  Peter 
to  do.  The  answer  came  in  a  surprising  way.  He  was 
very  hungry,  and  while  waiting  for  the  noonday  meal 
to  be  served  he  fell  asleep,  or  into  a  subconscious  state 
from  bodily  faintness."  This  is  not  the  accepted  trans- 
lation. The  Bible  says:  "And  he  became  hungry,  and 
would  have  eaten:  but  while  they  made  ready,  HE 
FELL  INTO  A  TRANCE."  Read  Acts  10-10.  It  would 
be  most  unwise  to  make  the  story  read  thus, — so  that 
the  Methodist  church  might  have  to  admit  that  Peter 
was  actually  IN  A  TRANCE.  It  is  extraordinary  that 
the  "Changers"  of  the  Bible  failed  to  revise  that  one 
word  into  "a  sub-conscious  state,"  as  Mrs.  Knowles 
called  it. 

She  follows  on:  "The  voice  of  God  said  twice  over 
in  tones  he  could  not  mistake,  'What  God  has  cleansed 
that  call  not  thou  common  or  unclean'.  But  the  Bible 


76         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOB  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

says:  'While  Peter  THOUGHT  ON  THE  VISION, 
THE  SPIRIT  SAID  UNTO  HIM,  Behold  three  men 
seek  thee,  arise,  therefore,  get  thee  down  and  go  with 
them/  Peter  himself  said,  according  to  the  Bible, 
'And  THE  SPIRIT  bade  me  go  with  them,  doubting 
nothing/  He  did  not  say  it  was  God.  Again,  he  de- 
scribed how  he  had  seen  an  angel  (or  spirit)  in  his 
house,  which  stood  and  said  unto  him,  'Send  men  to 
Joppa/  Also  read  in  the  Acts,  22nd  Chapter,  17th 
verse,  what  Paul  said  about  it:  'And  it  came  to  pass 
that,  when  I,  Paul,  was  come  to  Jerusalem,  even  while 
I  prayed  in  the  temple,  I  WAS  IN  a  TRANCE/  ' 

It  is  inexplicable  why  the  modern  'church  always 
professes  to  be  so  much  opposed  to  acknowledging  a 
trance  condition,  for  even  a  casual  reading  of  the  Bible 
shows  clearly  that  many  of  the  great  prophets  (or  s- 
of  that  time  were  subject  to  the  trance  state.  The  vis- 
ion and  dream  condition  existed  then  and  we  now  profit 
rhnvhv.  Mrs.  Knowles  evidently  thinks  so  highly  of  the 
subject,  and  the  lesson  it  teaches — almost  two  thousand 
years  after  it  happened,  as  to  give  a  large  amount  of 
space  to  it  in  her  writings;  and  therein  she  strongly  af- 
firms that  God  is  just  the  same  as  then ;  that  truth  never 
changes.  Notwithstanding  such  affirmation,  she  pro- 
ceeds to  emphatically  deny  its  possibility  today;  the 
power  she  eulogizes  she  assumes  to  be  used  only  by  God 
in  Peter's  time,  but  it  is  that  of  the  devil  in  our  day. 
What  inconsistency!  Let  us  avoid  such  brain-deaden  ing 
fallacies  of  creedal  stagnation.  Let  us  get  away  from 
the  slavery  of  hidebound  sects  and  dogmas. 

Wake  up  and  scale  the  heights  of  the  Infinite.  Use 
your  intellect  and  let  your  soul  gaze  over  the  valleys 
of  Divine  Progression  and  heights  of  Wisdom.  Read 
the  works  of  great  thinkers  of  all  classes,  orthodox  or 
otherwise,  Ingersoll,  Voltaire,  Thomas  Paine 's  "Age  of 
Reason/'  Then  read  your  Bible,  praying  that  God  will 
send  you  spirit  guidance  to  interpret  it.  Study  the 
power  of  the  Almighty  as  shown  by  Astronomy.  Real- 


WHERE  Is  HEAVEN  ?  77 

ize  that  God's  nature  laws  are  unchanged  and  evidenced 
in  all  scientific  studies,  as  shown  by  Chemistry  and  Ge- 
ology. Then  take  Philosophy.  Study  " White's  History 
of  the  Warfare  of  Science  with  Theology  in  Christen- 
dom," and  "Draper's  Intellectual  Development  of 
Europe."  Read  in  your  course  of  study,  the  evidence 
of  Evolution,  as  given  in  "Wallace's  Book  on  Darwin- 
ism"; also  read  "The  Life  of  Roger  Bacon";  there  are 
hundreds  of  interesting  works  by  scientists,  theologians, 
spiritualists  and  others  for  the  student  to  study. 

If  everyone  in  America  would  read  some  such  course 
in  mind  expansion,  and  study  thoughtfully,  with  a  firm 
desire  to  seek  truth  and  knowledge,  they  would  forever 
banish  the  slavish  influence  of  creeds  and  brain-blinding 
dogmas,  ecclesiastical  inconsistencies;  and  the  many 
fallacies  taught  by  so-called  theology  would  give  way 
to  the  "Soul  Truth"  given  by  God  himself. 

Along  the  line  of  modern  scientific  discovery  let  me 
mention  a  wonder  of  our  age,  which  makes  it  possible 
to  talk  along  a  beam  of  light,  natural  or  artificial.  In 
the  "Harbinger  of  Light,"  September  1st,  1919,  we 
are  informed  that  "Dr.  A.  0.  Rankine,  of  University 
College,  London,  has  succeeded  in  harnessing  the  sun's 
rays  and  using  them  as  a  means  of  voice  transmission. 
He  has  completed  a  remarkable  invention  which  makes 
it  possible  to  talk  along  a  beam  of  light,  using  it  as  a 
substitute  for  the  telephone  wire  with  a  transmitter  at 
one  end  and  a  receiver  at  the  other.  This  invention  has 
been  approved  by  the  Admiralty,  and  has  the  advantage 
over  wireless  telegraphy,  or  telephony,  in  rendering  a 
conversation  absolutely  secret. 

"In  one  of  the  laboratories  at  University  College,  Dr. 
Rankine  gave  a  demonstration  of  this  new  method  of 
voice  transmission.  Two  electrical  instruments  were 
placed  some  distance  apart,  and  a  beam  of  electric  light 
was  projected  from  one  to  the  other.  Dr.  Rankine  spoke 
into  the  voice  receiver,  which  resembles  a  small  phono- 
graphic sound  box.  'I  have  already  had  talks  with  sev- 


78         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

eral  friends  over  a  distance  of  a  mile  and  a  half,  and 
there  would  not  be  great  difficulty  in  holding  a  conver- 
sation over  a  distance  of  seven  or  eight  miles,  (that  be- 
ing about  the  extent  to  which  a  beam  of  light  could  be 
concentrated  on  the  horizon).  By  increasing  the  size 
of  the  mirrors  and  the  electrical  power,  greater  dis- 
tances could  be  traversed,  were  it  possible  to  throw  a 
beam  of  light  further.  Endless  possibilities  are  opened 
up  by  this  invention.  With  this  in  actual  view  who  can 
say,  'That  or  that  CANNOT  be  done?'  ' 

Let  me  recall  some  of  the  beautiful  thoughts  ex- 
pressed by  one  of  the  world 's  best  known  and  best  loved 
exponents  of  Spiritualism,  ninety-nine  years  old,  J.  M. 
Peebles,  M.  A.,  M.  D.,  Ph.  D.,  who  says:  "The  spirit 
world  is  here,  there,  everywhere.  When  the  death  an- 
gel of  deliverance  comes,  our  friends  do  not  ncessarily 
depart  from  us — they  only  cease  to  mainfest  themselves 
through  the  same  physical  body.  Their  attractions  and 
memories  continue  to  draw  them  to  those  they  love.  This 
love  principle  is  the  ruling  force  of  all  worlds.  Love 
is  immortal.  The  heavens  and  the  hells  are  more  'con- 
ditions' than  localities.  Compensation  runs  like  a  sil- 
ver thread  through  the  universe.  It  is  cause  and  effect, 
sowing  and  reaping.  The  thoughts,  words,  deeds  of  the 
present  life  weave  the  network,  murky  or  clear,  dark 
or  bright,  of  the  future.  No  spirit  can  get  away  from 
himself. 

"Memories,  like  shadows,  will  follow  us  all.  Oh,  th<> 
bitter  gnawing,  crushing  pains,  and  agonies  of  remorse 
that  torture  the  depraved,  and  the  viciously  selfish,  in 
that  retributive  and  adjusting  realm  of  the  hereafter. 
And  yet  God  is  Love.  Mercy's  door  is  never  shut.  Re- 
pentance is  ever  possible,  and  progress  a  universal  law. 
Jesus  preached  to  the  spiritually  imprisoned.  The  re- 
formers of  this  life  are  the  preachers  of  spirit  life.  The 
two  worlds,  ALL  worlds,  constitute  one  grand  brother- 
hood of  sympathetic  intelligence.  Life  on  earth  is  only 


WHERE  Is  HEAVEN  ?  79 

a  brief  school,  a  discipline,  a  pilgrimage.  Let  us,  then, 
kindly  help  each  other  along  the  tiresome  journey  ere  we 
put  our  sandals  off,  and  lay  our  burdens  down  by  the 
cypress  trees  that  shade  death's  peaceful  river." 

Read  in  the  Old  Testament  evidence  of  spirit  phe- 
nomena, as  told  in  the  story  describing  the  Feast  of  Bel- 
shazer ;  it  is  so  worded  generally,  as  to  give  the  impres- 
sion that  it  was  "the  hand  of  God"  that  appeared  on  the 
wall,  but  the  true  version  reads:  "In  the  same  hour 
came  forth  fingers  OF  A  MAN'S  HAND,  and  wrote 
over  against  the  candlestick,  upon  the  plaster  of  the 
wall,  of  the  king's  palace.  AND  THE  KING  SAW 
THE  PART  OF  THE  HAND  THAT  WROTE."  Meth- 
odists prefer  you  to  read  it  as  "God's  hand,"  for  a 
man's  hand  would  be  evidential  proof  of  the  spirit  ma- 
terialization of  a  man 's  hand,  writing  an  intelligent  mes- 
sage. 

The  Catholic  Bible  says  in  Daniel  5-5 :  '  'In  the  same 
hour  there  appeared  fingers,  as  it  were  of  the  hand  of 
a  man,  writing  over  against  the  candlestick  upon  the 
surface  of  the  wall  of  the  king's  palace;  AND  THE 
KING  BEHELD  THE  JOINTS  OF  THE  HAND 
THAT  WROTE." 

After  a  long,  protracted  and  careful  study,  Sir  Arthur 
Conan  Doyle  writes :  * '  What  are  the  churches  going  to 
do  about  it?  Are  they  going  to  continue  to  talk  non- 
sense about  diabolism?  Are  they  going  to  say  it  was 
the  Devil  who  converted  me  into  belief  in  life  after 
death?  If  that  is  the  devil's  work  he  is  the  most  valu- 
able member  of  the  community.  If  they  do,  then  we 
must  form  such  a  religious  body  as  may  sweep  others 
away  in  time.  If  they  are  wise  they  will  meet  us  half- 
way. They  will  realize  that  we  are  the  most  powerful 
allies  in  the  battle  against  materialism.  If  they  are  go- 
ing to  drive  us  out,  they  are  going  to  drive  out  the 
greatest  living  dynamic  thing  that  has  come  into  religion 
this  last  2000  years.  I  am  not  here  to  convert  anybody. 


80          PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

I  am  here  because  I  think  I  have  a  mission  to  say  this 
thing.  All  I  have — my  literary  reputation,  my  small 
savings — everything,  is  perfect  dross  to  me  compared 
with  the  happiness  I  derive  from  this  knowledge." 

*    *    * 

There's  a  beautiful  view  at  the  top  o'  the  hill, 

If  the  strength  be  yours  to  climb. 
There  is  always  a  lift,  and  a  rift  o'  the  clouds, 

That  disclose  the  peaks  sublime. 
The  road  may  be  rough, 
You  may  blow  and  puff, 

But  never  you  mind,  soon  you  're  scaling  the  bluff, 
Then  yours  is  the  view  at  the  top  o'  the  hill, 
If  you've  but  the  strength  to  climb. 

J.  M.  B. 


HELL-FIRE  IS  NOT  LITERAL 

INGE  quoting  from  an  article  written  by  Dr. 
Hyslop,  Secretary  of  the  American  Society  for 
Psychical  Research,  which  appeared  in  the 
American  Magazine  for  April,  1920,  the  public  has  been 
informed  of  his  death.  Referring  to  this,  Mr.  Arthur 
Brisbane  in  his  "Today"  column  said: 

''Doctor  Hyslop,  psychologist,  who  said  the  dead 
could  talk,  is  now  among  the  dead,  unfortunately.  His 
friends  say  he  will  come  back  and  tell  us  about  it.  But 
WILL  he"  "Because  he  died  of  a  clot  on  the  brain, 
and  although  his  spirit  was  within  his  brain  he  was  un- 
able to  speak  long  before  he  died."  He  is  asking  the 
question,  "How  can  he  speak  from  the  other  side  of  the 
grave  without  brain,  lungs  or  vocal  chords?"  He  also 
asks  why  ghosts  talk  only  to  those  who  believe  in  ghosts. 
Anyone  can  hear  a  telephone  message." 

Any  thinking  person  will  readily  understand  that  Mr. 
Brisbane  is  relying  principally  upon  the  comparative  ig- 
norance of  his  readers  on  the  subject  of  life  and  death ; 
otherwise  he  cannot  expect  to  have  this  statement  taken 
seriously.  He  forgets  that  nearly  all  the  scientific  men 
in  the  world  who  have  taken  up  the  practical  study  of 
Spiritualism,  as  a  science,  were,  previous  to  that  time, 
materialists ;  some  even  held  the  opinion  generally  known 
as  atheistic;  yet  these,  after  long  years  of  research  and 
study,  were  forced  to  secede  from  their  former  views 
and  admit  an  absolute  knowledge  that, — "the  spirit  of 
man  both  lives  and  functions  after  the  change  called 
Death."  These  representative  scientists  of  our  time, 
did  not  admit  a  previous  belief  in  apparitions,  yet  they 

[81] 


82         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

received  communications  in  like  manner  to  many  who 
did  believe  in  them,  and  have  been  convinced  by  mes- 
sages from  their  own  departed. 

I  want  to  ask  Mr.  Brisbane  if  he  really  thinks  that 
anyone  can  hear  a  telephone  message  without  first  com- 
plying with  the  conditions  necessary  before  such  a  mes- 
sage can  be  received.  Even  Mr.  Brisbane  MUST  allow 
the  operator,  who  represents  the  MEDIUM,  to  function 
according  to  the  technicalities  laid  down  by  science  re- 
specting Telephony.  Persons  who  want  an  earthly  mea- 
sage,  therefore,  MUST  comply  with  prerequisites.  If 
they  do  this,  whether  they  believe  in  ghosts  or  not,  they 
will  receive  a  reply  in  due  time.  We  are  all  subject 
to  natural  law,  in  one  form  or  another,  some  more,  some 
less.  According  to  the  theory  of  Mr.  Brisbane,  Dr.  Hys- 
lop  cannot  come  back  with  a  message  because  he  died 
"with  a  blood  clot  on  his  brain, "  and  he  presumes,  or 
rather  assumes,  that,  therefore  his  entity  will  be  unable 
to  speak  from  the  other  side;  as  such  an  entity  is,  in  his 
opinion  (another  unproved  presumption),  without  brain, 
lungs,  or  vocal  chords. 

Surely  Mr.  Brisbane  must  believe  that  the  Spirit  or 
Soul  of  man,  if  no  physical  body,  as  we  understand  it, 
lives  on  after  the  change  called  death ;  that  a  mere  ana- 
tomical change  in  our  material  body  does  not  in  any 
way  influence  our  spiritual  existence.  Does  not  Mr.  Bris- 
bane realize  that  God  controls  the  blood-clotted  brain  of 
Dr.  Hyslop,  even  after.it  is  laid  in  the  grave,  and,  that 
his  spirit,  even  his  body,  can  live  and  function  so  long 
as  the  Divine  Power  continues  to  control  it? 

Surely  he  does  not  believe  that  the  disintegration  of 
the  material  bodies  of  our  American  soldiers  during  the 
war  has  prejudiced  their  God-bestowed  power  of  living 
in  one  of  the  many  mansions  of  Christ,  and  therein  com- 
pleting a  beautiful  spiritual  upgrowth  of  life.  Another 
opportunity,  with  increased  knowledge  and  with  far 
higher  instructions,  to  overcome  earthly  desires,  and 
work  out  that  series  of  lives  which  shall  fit  him  to  realize 


HELL  FIRE  Is  NOT  LITERAL  83 

Truth,  and  the  blessed  promises  made  by  Christ  to  Man- 
kind. 

President  Wilson  said  in  this  regard:  "We  all  be- 
lieve, I  hope,  the  SPIRITS  OF  THESE  MEN  ARE  NOT 
BURIED  WITH  THEIR  BONES.  THEIR  SPIRITS 
LIVE.  I  HOPE— I  BELIEVE,  THAT  THEIR  SPIR- 
ITS ARE  PRESENT  WITH  US  AT  THIS  HOUR.  I 
HOPE  THAT  I  FEEL  THE  COMPULSION  OF 
THEIR  PRESENCE. " 

The  late  Cardinal  James  Gibbons,  head  of  the  Roman 
Catholic  Church  in  the  United  States,  declared:  "Man 
may  imprison  and  starve,  may  wound  and  kill  the  body, 
but  the  soul  is  beyond  his  reach,  and  is  as  impalpable  to 
his  touch  as  the  sun 's  ray.  The  temple  of  the  body  may 
be  reduced  to  ashes,  BUT  THE  SPIRIT  THAT  ANI- 
MATED THE  TEMPLE  CANNOT  BE  EXTIN- 
GUISHED. The  body,  which  is  from  Man,  Man  may 
take  away;  but  the  soul,  which  is  from  God,  NO  MAN 
CAN  DESTROY.  THE  DUST  SHALL  RETURN 
INTO  ITS  EARTH  FROM  WHENCE  IT  CAME, 
AND  THE  SPIRIT  TO  GOD  WHO  GAVE  IT." 

That  is  what  Spiritualists  believe  about  Dr.  Hyslop's 
body  and  spirit.  Physical  imperfections  here,  cannot 
affect  him  prejudicially  after  he  is  passed  to  spirit  life. 
I  would  ask  Mr.  Brisbane  if  he  really  believes  that  the 
killing  of  Socrates  by  the  hemlock  poison  route  affected 
his  soul,  or  spirit.  Is  not  the  spirit  of  that  great  teacher 
alive  today — somewhere?  Will  he  assert  that  the  physi- 
cal sufferings,  the  maiming  of  the  body,  and  the  cruci- 
fixion of  Jesus  of  Nazareth  prejudicially  affected  His 
progress  beyond  the  confines  of  earth,  or  delayed  his 
entrance  into  the  spiritual  life  beyond  the  grave?  We 
believe  that  the  Christ  Spirit  is  flooding  the  entire  uni- 
verse today !  Just  the  moment  He  passed  into  spirit  life 
the  effects  of  his  physical  wounds  were  a  thing  of  the 
past. 

Let  me  also  ask  Mr.  Brisbane  if  he  really  believes  that 
by  destroying  the  body  of  Joan  of  Arc,  at  the  stake,  her 


84         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

spirit  has  been  afflicted,  even  though  her  death  was  the 
result  of  indescribable  torture,  and  her  body  had  been 
previously  twisted  and  torn?  On  May  23rd,  1920,  the 
Catholic  Church  canonized  her,  made  her  a  Saint.  She 
is  therefore,  now  able  to  FORGIVE  the  sins  of  the  Cath- 
olic people,  according  to  their  belief.  Yet,  Mr.  Brisbane 
would  have  us  believe  that  Joan  of  Arc  was  not  affected 
by  the  same  law,  when  she  passed  over  the  line,  as  that 
he  selects  for  the  spirit  of  Dr.  Hyslop. 

According  to  the  statement,  we  can  only  infer  that 
Dr.  Hyslop  will  not  be  allowed  to  speak  to  friends  on 
earth  (from  the  other  sphere),  because  Mr.  Brisbane  as- 
sumes that  certain  cells  were  not  functioning  in  his 
brain.  To  what  place  would  he  assign  the  spirit  of  Joan 
of  Arc  who  was  burned  at  the  stake?  Why  should  he 
specially  grant  HER  the  privilege  of  coming  back  "to 
save  the  souls  of  millions  of  Catholics  in  the  world, ' '  and 
deny  Dr.  Hyslop  the  privilege  of  even  coming  back  to 
visit  his  own  personal  friends?  There  seems  here  to 
be  a  lack  of  justice — the  gentleman  discriminates — and 
yet  we  are  told  God  is  no  respecter  of  persons. 

In  another  of  the  Brisbane  columns  about  Joan  of  Arc 
he  said:  "She  died  very  bravely,  declaring  that  THE 
VOICES  THAT  LED  HER  TO  SAVE  FRANCE  HAD 
NOT  DECEIVED  HER,  AND  WITH  THE  NAME 
OF  JESUS  THE  LAST  WORD  ON  HER  LIPS."  He 
here  gives  a  definite  admission  of  spirit  voices.  Thou- 
sands of  persons  in  the  world  hear  voices  in  precisely 
the  same  way ;  why  doubt  that  they  are  just  as  sincere  as 
was  Joan  of  Arc  ?  We  may,  in  all  charity,  believe,  that, 
without  regard  to  sect  or  creed,  many  of  them  would 
die  for  Truth  in  the  same  noble  way  in  which  she  did. 
Mr.  Brisbane  claims,  strangely  enough,  that  Joan  of  Arc 
HEARD  voices,  but  absolutely  denies  that  we  are  per- 
mitted to  hear  voices  today. 

Again  he  says:  "Some  object  to  cremation  on  the 
ground  that  it  destroys  individuality ;— IT  HAS  NOT 
DESTROYED  JOAN  OF  ARC'S  INDIVIDUALITY. 


HELL  FIRE  Is  NOT  LITERAL  85 

She  was  burned,  her  ashes  were  thrown  into  the  River 
Seine,  and  by  this  time  have  probably  been  washed  into 
the  English  Channel,  and  out  into  the  Atlantic  Ocean. " 
Brisbane  professes  to  think  differently  about  the  post- 
mortem conditions  of  Dr.  Hyslop.  Because  HE  was  a 
Spiritualist  he  must  not  be  allowed  to  even  communi- 
cate with  his  friends  here  on  earth.  Joan  of  Arc  was 
undoubtedly  spiritual,  and  the  records  of  Jier  life  and 
death  prove  her  to  have  been  one  of  the  greatest  spir- 
itual mediums  who  ever  lived  on  this  earth. 

Mr.  Brisbane  then  turns  his  theories  to  another  factor 
of  belief  and  says:  "Many  have  attempted  through 
philosophical  reasoning,  EMPLOYMENT  OF  MEDI- 
UMS, etc.,  to  actually  prove  immortal  life.  But  proof 
there  is  not!  TRICKS  OR  SINCERE  DECEPTION 
OF  THE  MEDIUMS  AND  OTHER  SPIRITUALISTS 
ARE  BENEATH  THE  CONTEMPT  OF  A  FIVE- 
YEAR-OLD  CHILD."  That  is  exactly  what  they  said 
about  Joan  of  Arc  nearly  five  hundred  years  ago  when 
they  burned  her  at  the  stake  for  asserting  that  she 
heard  voices.  Now  they  make  her  a  Saint  and  tacitly 
admit  the  church  of  that  day  was  wrong! 

Four  hundred  years  from  now  they  will  possibly  be 
erecting  monuments  to  those  truly  sincere  mediums  who 
have  steered  the  Ship  of  Truth  through  the  storm  waves 
and  verbal  tempests ;  the  windy  discourses  and  harmless 
thunderings  of  pertinent  preachers,  such  as  the  church 
is  now  seeking  to  brew  against  Spiritualism.  One  age 
revokes  what  the  other  age  professed.  "God  moves  in  a 
mysterious  way  His  wonders  to  perform/'  is  true  in- 
deed. Mr.  Brisbane  objected  to  any  reference,  and  to 
the  words  "Roman  Catholic"  in  press  reports  of  the 
Irish  troubles,  and  in  so  doing  said:  "It  would  be  bet- 
ter if  those  words  could  be  left  out. ' '  Strangely  enough 
he  can,  if  it  will  support  his  contentions,  profess  to  be 
impartial  and  whilst  using  the  terms  *  *  Spiritualist ' '  and 
"Spiritualism"  in  his  own  columns,  with  the  apparent 
intention  of  leading  others  to  believe  that  all  Spiritualists 


86         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

are  either  imposters  or  self-deceived,  and  so  misled  by 
others  that  they  are  crazy; — the  victims  of  evil  spirits 
who  are  controlled  by  the  Devil.  He  uses  his  columns  as 
a  means  of  attacking  Spiritualism  without  compunction. 
But  even  though  he  is  reputed  to  be  one  of  the  highest 
paid  editorial  writers  in  the  world,  his  pen  cannot  pre- 
vent the  great  search  for  Truth  now  prevalent  through- 
out the  world. 

Spiritualism  is  a  religion  to  bring  comfort  to  the 
weary  soul.  It  teaches  the  Christ  promises  of  a  God  of 
Love  and  Justice.  Time  for  redemption  in  this  life ;  or 
it  may  be  AFTER  this  life.  Not  such  teachings  as  we  find 
in  the  following  passage,  which  is  taken  from  the  Pres- 
byterian Confession  of  Faith:  "The  bodies  of  men 
after  death  return  to  dust  and  see  corruption ;  but  their 
souls  (which  neither  die  or  sleep),  having  an  immortal 
subsistence,  immediately  return  to  God  who  gave  them. 
The  souls  of  the  righteous,  then,  being  made  perfect  in 
holiness,  are  received  into  the  highest  heavens,  where 
they  behold  the  face  of  God  in  light  and  glory,  waiting 
for  the  full  redemption  of  their  bodies;  AND  THE 
SOULS  OF  THE  WICKED  ARE  CAST  INTO  HELL, 
WHERE  THEY  REMAIN  IN  TORMENT  AND  UT- 
TER DARKNESS  RESERVED  TO  THE  JUDGMENT 
OF  THE  GREAT  DAY." 

The  Christian  Herald,  published  weekly  during  the 
life  of  Charles  Spurgeon,  the  sermons  of  the  great  Bap- 
tist minister.  I  quote  from  his  published  sermon  on  ' '  The 
Resurrection  of  the  Dead,"  the  following  extract: 
"When  thou  diest,  thy  soul  will  be  tormented  alone, 
that  will  be  a  hell  for  it;  but  at  the  day  of  judgment 
thy  body  will  join  thy  soul  and  then  thou  wilt  have  twin 
hells,  THY  SOUL  SWEATING  DROPS  OF  BLOOD, 
AND  THY  BODY  SUFFUSED  WITH  AGONY,  IN 
FIRE  EXACTLY  LIKE  THAT  WHICH  WE  HAVE 
ON  EARTH,  THY  BODY  WILL  LIE,  ASBESTOS- 
LIKE,  FOREVER  UNCONSUMED,  ALL  THY 
VEINS,  ROADS  FOR  THE  FEET  OF  PAIN  TO 


HELL  FIRE  Is  NOT  LITERAL  87 

TRAVEL  ON,  EVERY  NERVE  A  STRING  ON 
WHICH  THE  DEVIL  SHALL  PLAY  FOREVER  HIS 
DIABOLICAL  TUNE  OF  HELL'S  UNUTTERABLE 
LAMENT."  No  comfort  in  this!  No  encouragement! 
No  promise  of  mercy!  Pure  Diabolism.  Pure  Terror- 
ism. 

Just  one  more  of  those  wild  teachings  of  their  views, 
as  expressed  by  the  acknowledgment  of  sectarianism — 
the  accepted  * 'Dogma  Defenders." 

The  following  is  taken  from  the  "Works  of  Samuel 
Hopkins,"  D.  D.  (pages  457  and  458)  :  "The  smoke  of 
their  torment  shall  ascend  up  in  the  sight  of  the  blessed 
forever,  and  serve  as  a  most  clear  glass  always  before 
their  eyes  to  give  then  a  constant,  bright,  and  most  af- 
fecting view," — "This  display  of  the  Divine  character 
and  glory  will  be  in  favor  of  the  redeemed,  and  most 
entertaining,  and  give  the  highest  pleasure  to  those  who 
love  God,  and  raise  their  happiness  to  ineffable  heights. 
Should  this  eternal  punishment  and  this  fire  be  extin- 
guished, it  would  in  a  great  measure  obscure  the  light 
of  heaven  and  put  an  end  to  a  great  part  of  the  happi- 
ness and  glory  of  the  blessed."  In  other  words — those 
who  go  to  Heaven  will  delight  in  witnessing  the  agony 
of  their  kith  and  kin  who  are  not  found  worthy  to  at- 
tain to  their  bliss. 

We  should  surely  rejoice  that  there  are  only  a  few 
of  these  religious  terrorists  left.  With  the  exception  of 
such  "Hell-Fire"  evangelists  as  Mr.  Billy  Sunday  and 
Dr.  Torry,  there  are  few  ministers  who  would  care  to 
preach  such  illogical,  materialistic,  un-Christian,  medie- 
val and  dark-age  stuff  to  intelligent  men  and  women. 
Preachers  today  have  a  hard  enough  time  trying  to  fill 
their  churches,  although  they  omit  such  teachings. 

To  obtain  crowds,  some  of  our  great  preachers  resort 
to  vaudeville,  or  advertise  that — "next  Sunday  a  regi- 
mental band  will  render  a  few  selections," — "a  great 
whistler  will  perform";  "the  Famous  Jubilee  Singers 
will  sing  plantation  songs,"  or  "a  Grand  Opera  star 


88          PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

will  sing";  or  "Cunning,  the  great  Magician,  will  ex- 
pose Spiritualism ' ' ;  or  some  other  attractive  morsel  will 
be  presented,  as  the  piece-de-resistance  of  the  CHURCH 
service.  Several  of  the  advertised  subjects  here  in  Los 
Angeles  were  "Bringing  Up  Father,"  "Keeping  Up 
With  Lizzie,"  and  "Pussy  Cat,  Pussy  Cat,  Where  Have 
You  Been"? 

Some  reader  may  be  inclined  to  think  that  I  have 
been  hasty  in  forming  my  opinion  that  the  majority 
of  the  ministers  of  religion  are  absolutely  opposed  to 
practicing  the  Scriptural  and  Apostolic  request,  "Come, 
let  us  reason  together,"  or  the  injunctions  to  "Seek  and 
ye  shall  find,"  or  "Prove  all  things."  To  avoid  mis- 
conception I  arranged  for  letters  to  be  sent  to  some  of 
the  prominent  ministers  of  Los  Angeles;  in  case  they 
had  misunderstood  former  letters,  or  my  object  in  writ- 
ing them.  The  following  were  the  representative  min- 
isters to  whom  I  wrote :  Rev.  J.  A.  Eby,  Presbyterian ; 
Dr.  Carl  S.  Patton,  Congregational;  Rev.  J.  A.  Francis, 
Baptist ;  Rev.  Edgar  Fay  Daugherty,  First  Christian ; 
and  other  letters,  referred  to  in  the  earlier  chapters  of 
this  book,  to  Dr.  Charles  Edward  Locke,  Methodist ;  Dr. 
J.  Whitcomb  Brougher,  Baptist ;  Rev.  Dr.  Wm.  G.  Mills, 
Presbyterian ; — also  to  a  Roman  Catholic  Priest ;  a  Chris- 
tian Scientist  extracts  from  my  letter  follow: 

"Dear  Brother:  I  am  writing  you  this  letter  after 
reading  your  statement  in  the  daily  paper  regarding  the 
question,  'Life  After  Death/  I  would  be  pleased  to 
have  you  answer  the  following  questions,  if  you  can  do 
so  graciously.  Would  you  be  willing  to  go  where  you 
could  see  real,  genuine  materialization?  where  you  can 
see,  and  touch  spirit  hands;  and  this  with  the  electric 
lights  on.  WILL  you  go  if  you  believe  this  to  be  genu- 
ine? This  is  in  a  private  home  where  the  investigators 
are  privately  invited,  and  no  money  asked.  Would  you 
be  willing  to  go  to  the  'Francis  Church  of  Truth,'  where 
you  can  see  the  reading  of  articles  by  the  Science  of 


HELL  FIRE  Is  NOT  LITERAL  89 

Psychoinetry  ?  I  am  the  President  of  the  church,  and 
enclose  a  card  for  your  information.  This  phase  of  phe- 
nomena is  presented  publicly  every  Sunday  and  Tues- 
day evening  during  our  service,  and  with  the  lights  ON. 
Would  you  be  willing  to  investigate  privately  with  our 
pastor,  Rev.  George  Francis,  who  was  an  orthodox  min- 
ister for  many  years?  If  these  things  are  of  interest  I 
shall  be  glad  to  hear  from  you."  Cordially  yours, 
James  McGregor  Beatty. "  All  the  letters  were  practically 
similar,  and  take  note  of  this  fact — I  RECEIVED  BUT 
ONE  ANSWER— it  was  from  Dr.  Carl  S.  Patton,  of  the 
First  Congregational  Church  of  Los  Angeles.  His  let- 
ter was  a  revelation  to  me ;  and  I  want  it  to  go  on  rec- 
ord that  I  honour  one  orthodox  preacher  who  has  the 
courage  of  his  convictions;  his  answer  was  gentlemanly, 
tolerant,  and  truthful;  it  contained  the  very  essence  of 
Christian  friendship,  a  virtue  apparently  lacking  in 
some  of  the  preachers  I  addressed.  His  letter  was  short, 
but  is  not  published  herewith,  for  it  was  sincere  in  tenor 
and  couched  in  a  manly  spirit, — even  though  there  is 
no  suggestion  that  Dr.  Patton  was  in  such  harmony  with 
Spiritualistic  doctrines  as  to  enter  into  an  active  in- 
vestigation thereof.  Several  talks  over  the  telephone 
with  this  gentleman  created  a  friendly  desire  to  know, 
and  to  come  into  closer  vibration  with  lairn,  which  I  hope 
yet  to  do. 

I  wish  to  direct  attention  to  the  fact  that  I  am  nuv 
personally  antagonistic  to  ANY  clergyman,  simply  be- 
cause we  differ  in  opinion.  If  any  preacher  feels  it  in- 
cumbent on  him  to  teach  that  "spirits  cannot  communi- 
cate," from  his  own  conviction  (after  investigation),  it 
is  then  his  duty  to  do  so,  and  I  respect  him !  If  he  does 
not  believe  that  they  can  or  do,  and  preaches  accordingly 
to  his  congregation;  and  gives  prayerful  effect  to  the 
light,  so  far  as  it  is  given  to  him,  that's  HIS  business! 
However,  when  any  preacher  preaches  as  an  incontro- 
vertible fact,  that  they  do  NOT  and  cannot  communi- 
cate, without  personal,  evidential  knowledge;  or  influ- 


90         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

ences  his  hearers  by  such  a  statement  as  "if  they  do,  it's 
of  the  Devil," — then  I  contend  that  he  is  not  justified, 
or  fulfilling  his  mission  of  leading  people  to  a  knowl- 
edge of  God,  based  upon  the  life  and  teachings  of  Christ. 
It  is  a  matter  of  personal  opinion,  or  theological  bias,  and 
he  is  no  more  fit  to  TEACH  them,  than  he  would  be  if  he 
told  his  hearers  that  Astronomy,  the  Wireless,  or  Chem- 
istry were  of  the  devil,  and  taught  (as  in  the  olden  days) 
that  it  was  contrary  to  the  Will  of  God,  for  humanity  to 
scientifically  study  them;  or  explained  the  unrecosrni/ed 
laws  of  nature  to  suit  their  individual  views,  just  be- 
cause they  were  Baptists,  Presbyterians,  or  Method 

One  of  the  greatest  errors,  made  by  the  opponents  <>t 
Spiritualism,  is,  the  belief  that  only  foolish  messages 
come  from  the  so-called  spirits  of  the  dead.  That  is  a 
grave  mistake  and  only  stands  as  absolute  evidence  of 
ignorance  of  the  subject.  To  dispel  this  fallacy — and 
there  are  many  who  receive  communications  in  this  way 
—I  have  asked  permission  to  present  to  my  readers  a 
few  messages  which  came  through  the  automatic  writ 
ing  of  a  gentleman  who  has  never  affiliated  with  the 
Spiritualist  dm  relies,  an  independent  man,  not  a  me- 
dium and  who  is  now  living  i"  I^os  Angeles;  this  re- 
quest was  kindly  granted,  and  they  appear  here  in  print 
for  the  first  ti" 

M.-MM-  -'"'m's  spent  alone  with  this  scientific  student 
..nci  invest  i«:ator  has  proven  to  me  that  he  is  no  doubt 
an  advanced  soul,  and  I  have  personally  chosen  th 
lowing  from  enough  dictated  writings  to  fill  a  volume: 
these  came  from  spirit  spheres  to  earth  just  as  genuinely 
and  surely  as  did  any  prophetic  writings  to  the  prophets 
of  old.  They  come  in  different  handwritings,  according 
to  the  source,  and  are  very  different  from  his  own  hand- 
writing; I  am  predicting  that  all  of  his  wonderful  si  IR 
ITUAL  writings  (for  he  receives  no  material  messages) 
will  be  very  valuable  to  the  world,  when  he  has,  himself, 
passed  to  spirit  realms.  Read  them  carefully  and  judge 
whether  they  are  of  an  inconsequential  nature. 


HELL  FIRE  Is  NOT  LITERAL  91 

I  am  in  possession  of  many  of  the  original  manu- 
scripts; have  seen  them  written;  I  will  be  glad  to  pro- 
duce them  for  examination  of  the  truly  sincere  student 
or  investigator.  I  also  possess  information  regarding 
this  gentleman's  busy  life,  which  has  included  an  ex- 
tensive study  of  many  branches  in  science  and  art,  with 
business  and  civic  experience  in  many  parts  of  the 
world.  I  here  present  the  following  writings  of  Dr.  C. 
H.  Stuart-Wade,  J.  P.,  F.  R.  G.  S.,  F.  R.  H.  S.,  and 
many  other  learned  and  scientific  organizations  of 
Europe  and  America. 

*  'Doubt  not  that  the  mist  called  Death  can  be  passed 
through  by  those  who  have  gone  through  many  lives 
and  received  knowledge  and  power  to  know  of  things 
that  exist  beyond  the  realms  of  earth  science.  The  time 
cometh  ere  long  when  much  that  is  dark  shall  be  brought 
to  light  and  that  which  is  hidden  be  revealed  to  the 
searchers  after  truth.  Few  indeed  are  they  who  seek 
from  spiritual  desire ;  therefore  be  not  misled  by  all  who 
profess  to  speak  with  the  world  beyond.  By  their  truth 
thou  shalt  recognize  their  claim,  for  there  be  many  false 
spirits  abroad,  as  was  foretold,  who  will  try  to  win  away 
from  the  desire  to  sppk  knowledge  of  that  which  com- 
eth from  the  spiritual  spheres.7' 

"Make  thy  life  on  earth  happy  by  kindness  and  love 
to  all  God 's  created  beings ;  for,  as  ye  do  on  tfe^  Sorrow- 
ful Star,  so  shall  ye  reap  in  the  Spirit  life.  For  vWa 
deeds  of  the  mortal  shall  bear  fruit  for  life  happiness, 
or  for  death  mortification  and  remorse,  when  the  mortal 
puts  off  the  material  cloak.  It  is  for  each  one  to  choose. 
Mortal  life  is  part  of  the  great  scheme  of  the  Creator. 
None  who  seek  shall  be  lost  eternally.  Time  on  earth 
well  spent  is  God's  training  for  future  bliss.  Trust  in 
God's  power  bringeth  all  good  in  the  brighter  worlds 
to  come.  Those  only  shall  pass  to  spirit  plane  who  have 
overcome  selfishness,  rendered  good  for  evil;  overcome 
their  angry  passions;  rendered  help  and  comfort  to  the 
sick,  needy,  and  heavy-hearted;  loved  their  fellow-man 


92         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

with  the  Christ  love,  and  sought  His  help  by  prayer  and 
thoughtful  study  of  their  own  faults " 

' '  There  be  those  on  earth  who  wilfully  refuse  to  accept 
knowledge  or  instruction.  The  Christ  truly  said  many 
are  called,  but  few  indeed  are  they  who  answer  the  call. 
It  has  ever  been  thus.  LIGHT  comes  from  above,  but 
the  child  of  earth  will  not  open  the  eye  of  the  soul  to 
receive;  and  so  the  opportunity  of  an  incarnation  is 
lost.  Let  not  thy  soul  be  troubled  for  thy  duty  has  been 
fulfilled.  Carry  thy  message  elsewhere.  Let  not  thy 
heart  be  disheartened  by  thy  apparent  failure.  Go  thy 
way,  for  thou  shalt  not  waste  any  strength  on  barren 
soil.  Material  is  the  heart;  selfishness  dominates.  In- 
terest is  only  subservient  to  the  passions  that  ages  ago 
led  cruelty,  arrogance,  pride  and  utter  indifference  to 
human  pain  to  rule  life.  Hold  thou  the  power  thou  now 
hast,  and  by  God's  providence  a  brief  space  of  silent 
thought  may  bring  a  full  realization  of  this  truth. " 

4 'By  faith,  and  hope,  and  love  of  his  fellow  shall  the 
searcher  after  truth  learn  the  Will  of  the  Great  Giver  of 
all  things.  By  Faith  ye  shall  learn  that  He  guideth  all 
thy  ways;  that  He  through  His  ministers  on  Earth  as 
in  heaven — for  heaven  is  every  whore,  if  ye  will  make 
it  so — guideth  «H  tnmgs  in  harmony  though  humanity 
cannot  recognize  his  power  in  all  things.  Hope  is  in 
every  bocbr> — the  desire  to  learn; — the  desire  to  know, 
P^J  10  teach  that  which  is  given  to  thee,  is  the  visible 
expression  of  the  hope  that,  by  knowledge,  ye  shall  be 
the  better  able  to  ask  higher  gifts  from  Him  who  is  ever 
able  to  give  to  those  who  seek  THAT  WHICH  IS  OF 
A  SPIRITUAL  NATURE  and  a  benefit  to  them  or 
others.  LOVE  is  the  truest  form  of  God's  gifts,  for  by 
it  ye  can  forgive;  ye  can  look  with  charity  on  the  fail- 
ures of  the  weak.  BY  IT  CHRIST 'S  TEACHINGS  ARE 
SHOWN  TO  THY  WORLD  AS  REALITIES ;  for,  as 
ye  love  one  another  so  shall  ye  act  toward  all  men  and 
tread  the  path  He  passed,  until  the  desires  of  earth  life 
be  ended;  and  thou  begin  to  learn  that  true  love  alone 


HELL  FIRE  Is  NOT  LITERAL  93 

"  Unless  the  mind  learn  to  know  itself,  the  truth  shall 
can  bring  created  beings  to  a  knowledge  of  the  Divine 
Revelation  on  the  earth." 

not  be  revealed.  Instructors  are  sent  only  to  those  who 
are  faithful  and  themselves  are  seeking  knowledge. 
There  are  spirits  on  earth  who  have  returned  of  their 
own  desire  to  aid  the  weary-hearted,  to  strengthen  the 
weak,  to  help  the  doubters,  and  by  their  knowledge  of 
the  higher  spheres,  they  are  able  to  plant  the  seed  of 
future  life  and  Love;  to  water  it,  with  their  love  and 
to  bring  forth  good  desires.  The  returning  spirits  of 
Light  are  but  few  comparatively;  the  astral  many,  and 
of  the  earth  plane — purely  material.  Be  not  fearful 
in  the  mortal  body.  Even  the  Christ  suffered  for  mor- 
tal thought.  Know  that  the  earth-born  denying  to  one 
another  those  rights  granted  by  God  to  his  children — 
which  are  love  of  one  another,  justice,  chastity,  honour, 
truth,  trust,  forgiveness,  integrity,  together  with  those 
taught  by  Jesus  on  earth, — shall  in  no  wise  obtain  the 
happiness  and  joy  in  the  life  beyond.  They  shall  suffer 
the  like  manner  as  they  have  made  others  suffer,  in  in- 
tensity of  degree.  As  ye  mete  to  one  another — the  same 
treatment  will  be  the  punishment.  For  as  ye  do  to  oth- 
ers in  the  earth  world,  so  shall  it  be  done  unto  thee  in 
the  world  thou  shall  pass  to." 

"Let  flow  the  depths  of  love,  charity,  sympathy,  and 
thou  shalt  the  more  fully  realize  the  Christ  teachings. 
Teach  compassion,  humility,  love,  purity,  Divine  truth; 
and  with  living  fire  combat  pride,  selfishness,  jealousy, 
prejudice,  ritual,  and  false  doctrines.  Arise  and  work. 
Forgive  those  who  have  offended  thee  as  ye  seek  for- 
giveness; so  shall  power  be  given  thee.  When  things 
are  as  bad  as  they  can  be — fear  not,  but  try  to  realize 
that  God's  surgery  is  probing  the  cancerous  growth — 
and  life  everlasting  will  be  the  final  result.  As  the  soul 
approaches  liberty,  so  shall  the  knowledge  of  truth,  and 
the  fitness  of  futurity  become  apparent  to  thee." 


94         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

"Life  on  earth  is  love  and  hope,  patience  or  despair, 
doubt  or  trust.  Ye  who  live  on  the  Sorrowful  Star  rest 
in  ignorance,  few  even  knowing  the  longings  of  the  Soul. 
Life  beyond  is  really  leading  up  to  an  eternal  life.  One 
of  that  activity  and  harmony,  which  promotes  peace  and 
happiness.  A  loss  of  the  material  or  bodily  selfishness 
— the  Christ  expression  of  "Love  thy  neighbor  as  thy- 
self/* Learn  to  know  thyself — strive  to  spread  Love 
and  happiness ;  help  the  weary-hearted,  the  doubter,  the 
thoughtless,  the  searcher  after  truth. " 

"Ignorant  or  willful  error  must  be  purged,  by  sor- 
row and  penitence,  ere  the  spirit  pass  to  the  spiritual 
sphere.  Christ  said,  Many  are  called,  but  few  achieve 
the  perfection  necessary.  Life  is  but  a  breath,  a  garden 
in  which  the  soul  shall  grow  until  God  calls  it  to  end- 
less bliss.  It  is  not  God  who  punishes  humanity.  The 
individual  who  neglects  his  or  her  duty  to  God,  to  his 
family,  and  to  his  brothers  and  sisters  in  the  world,  is 
preparing  his  own  punishment  in  futurity.  The  seed 
sown  shall  bring  forth  the  fruit,  or  the  weeds;  and  the 
sower  shall  himself  reap  what  was  sown,  be  it  good  or 
evil ;  after  the  body  has  passed  hence  comes  the  harvest 
of  a  life,  and  not  until  the  transition  is  passed — and  its 
self-punishment  inflicted — shall  rebirth  open  the  way 
to  a  new  opportunity  to  move  anew  on  the  path  to  the 
higher  spheres.  Happy  the  one  who  moves  onward  from 
the  material  to  the  spiritual.  He  or  she  is  truly  'born 
again!*  but  bitter  indeed  are  the  dregs  drunk  by  the 
willful  hearted  and  the  unbelievers,  who  fail  to  learn  the 
lessons  self  taught.  Happy  indeed  is  the  mortal  who 
shall  love  his  brother  as  himself/' 

"Let  the  Light  of  the  Sun  shine  forth  in  thy  aura; 
let  thy  brain,  soul  and  body  center  on  the  highest  spheres, 
and  live  only  for  others.  Ever  keeping  the  spiritual 
power  of  thy  mortal  body  gazing  out,  and  throwing  its 
vibrations  upward  to  the  throne  of  light.  There  is  no 
God-designed  punishment  for  sins  committed  in  earth 
life.  God  is  not  of  the  low,  earthly  mind  that  desires 


HELL  FIRE  Is  NOT  LITERAL  95 

revenge.  Even  spirits  may  not  realize  in  full  the  pure 
divinity  of  the  Creator;  how  then  can  Humanity?  Sin 
brings  its  own  remembrance  when  body  and  soul  sep- 
arate :  then,  the  Soul  realizes  its  imperfections.  It  knows 
itself  in  reality,  and  by  its  own  God-given  power  of 
knowledge,  passes  judgment  on  its  own  past  sins.  The 
body-soul  seeks  to  weigh,  in  the  scales  of  a  Divine  jus- 
tice, its  failures  and  its  successes  in  the  life  past;  and, 
to  put  it  as  human  mind  would  express  it, — sin  provides 
its  own  punishment,  and  impels  the  spirit  passed  over 
to  seek  its  place  of  rest,  retribution,  punishment,  or  plane 
of  advancement  (according  to  its  decision — arrived  at  by 
strict,  impartial  justice — evolved  through  a  knowledge 
of  willful  failure  and  neglect,  or  lack  of  experience,  and 
desire  for  good),  in  that  state  where  progress  will  be 
made." 

"Thoughts  are  flowers  abud.  A  thought  springs  in 
the  mind.  A  seed  has  been  sown,  the  plant  has  grown. 
The  bud  is  formed  unseen,  even  as  the  thought.  We 
know  not  what  the  bud  will  produce.  It  is  rounded  and 
colorless.  The  thought  is  formless.  The  bud  changes 
and  the  vibrations  of  color  harmonize  and  blend,  the 
petals  unfold.  The  perfume  spreads  abroad  and  the  at- 
mosphere receives  and  carries  it  even  as  the  thought  is 
carried  far  and  wide.  The  flower  grows  in  beauty,  fra- 
grace  and  strength.  So  the  good  that  is  spread 
abroad  aids  spirit  forms  to  carry  it  to  the  hearts  of 
those  who  need  comfort,  and  the  emanations  of  your 
brain  fulfill  the  duty  which  you  were  destined  by  the 
Almighty  Creator  of  all  things  to  fill.  Thought  is  a 
bud,  a  flower,  a  sweet  smelling  sacrifice." 

"There  be  human  beings  that  know  not  their  own 
minds;  variable  as  the  smoke  you  see;  such  need  Soul 
Surgery  and  bodily  agony  to  come  to  realize  their  own 
need  of  submitting  themselves  to  spirit  guidance,  in  Faith 
as  well  as  in  mere  words.  A  sorrow  sent  is  God 's  method 
of  teaching  that  mankind  is  not  sufficient  in  its  own  lit- 
tle plane  of  existence,  to  control  even  its  own  affairs. 


96         PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

How  then  can  it  control  self  unless  aid  is  sought  from  the 
messengers  of  God — the  ministers  of  the  spirit  worlds — 
those  who  watch  and  bear  the  petitions  to  the  One  Father 
of  All.  From  little  events  great  results  may  follow.  A 
thought ;  a  word ;  a  look ;  a  sneer ;  it  may  be  nothing  said, 
and  yet  the  moment  of  redemption  passes  for  ages  of 
time.  A  wearisome,  rocky  road  once  again  to  be  trav- 
eled; and  a  waiting  and  watching  of  those  seeking  re- 
lease in  the  lands  ye  know  not  of." 

"Will,  is  the  power  above  all  others;  for,  by  His  will 
the  Creator  established  and  maintains  all  things.  Will, 
in  Faith,  and  ye  shall  succeed. 

"What  is  inspired  by  good,  must  come  from  good,  if 
carried  out  by  that  intention  alone. 

"God  has  set  down  laws  of  Nature,  of  which  ye  know 
nothing  in  reality;  these  followed,  in  the  desire  for 
truth,  must  be  for  good. 

"All  things  in  nature  are  associated  in  the  chain  of 
God's  laws;  they  are  interwoven  with  material  and 
spiritual  life. 

"Mankind  can  never  comprehend,  with  his  limited 
powers  of  mind,  the  things  which  are  within  his  ability 
to  control  in  the  realms  of  nature,  if  he  is  of  the  earth 
plane,  and  dominated  by  the  desires  of  the  material 
body." 

"The  wind  bloweth  and  yet  know  not  whence  it  com- 
eth,  but  God  knows  and  guides  it.  He  sendeth  it  forth 
to  do  good  for  mankind.  The  flowers  bloom  and  shed 
their  fragrance  on  the  air,  but  how  they  are  made  ye 
know  not.  The  colors  are  formed  by  His  Almighty 
power,  and  ye  see  through  them  some  of  the  beauties  of 
the  worlds  beyond,  though  the  colors  ye  can  see  by  mor- 
tal eye  are  nothing  to  those  which  exist  in  the  life  eternal. 
May  His  spirit  flow  into  your  heart,  and  shower  the 
beauties  of  worlds  unseen  upon  you  this  night." 

"In  this  sphere  we  are  mostly  students,  and  the 
teachers  from  above  come  and  instruct  us  (even  as  we 
instruct,  as  far  as  we  are  able),  to  influence  those  who 


HELL  FIRE  Is  NOT  LITERAL  97 

are  selected  to  pass  on  our  messages,  to  those  who  seek 
Truth  in  the  Sorrowful  Star.  Ye  are  not  yet  showing 
what  thou  art  best  fitted  for;  but  fear  not,  as  thou  fol- 
lowest  the  advice  sent  out  to  thee,  through  our  minis- 
er,  and  the  thought  vibrations  which  come  to  thee  from 
time  to  time,  so  shall  ye  develop  in  spiritual  and  also 
in  the  loving  attribute  of  attraction:  The  time  is  not 
distant,  when  it  shall  be  shown  thee  what  line  of  work 
thou  are  called  upon  to  perform.  There  is  much  yet  to 
come,  and  we  will  endeavor  to  teach  thee  soon,  as  to  the 
work  in  the  Astral  plane  (in  the  class  which  thou  and 
we  are  holding  simultaneously)  so  that  ye  may  learn 
what  to  avoid;  and  the  students  here,  learn  how  best 
to  help  those  in  earth  life  who  seek  knowledge ;  and  also, 
to  send  out  the  threads  which  float  in  the  Astral  plane, 
(like  spider  webs)  so  that  those  who  are  longing  for  the 
Light,  may  have  the  opportunity  of  hanging  thereon, 
and  being  drawn  up/' 

"We  have  lived  also,  and  longed  to  know  more  of  the 
life  beyond.  Happy  art  thou,  in  being  permitted  to 
know  the  little  shown  to  thee.  Thy  life  is,  and  has  been, 
one  of  help  to  the  sick  and  distressed.  Knowledge  grows 
in  thee,  and  the  vibrations  sent  thee  are  to  prove  that  life 
continues ;  and  that  God  performs  His  works  in  way  we 
cannot  understand — but  which  ye  cannot  help  but  be- 
lieve. Let  joy  and  happiness  shine  from  thy  counte- 
nance. Let  thine  eyes  be  like  the  bright  sun  pouring 
forth  love  and  sweetness  on  all  surrounding  thee.  Dis- 
pel all  gloom,  for  that  attracts  the  evil  spirits,  who  dare 
not  approach  where  the  light  of  heavenly  spirts  control. 
Be  happy  thyself;  bestow  happiness;  as  thy  guardians 
seek  ever  to  bestow  it  upon  thee,  even  though  the  trials 
of  life  be  many." 

"Happiness  cannot  be  found  on  earth.  Be  content 
with  that  given  thee,  and  see  that  thou  use  it  well,  so 
that  what  ye  have  may  be  shared  with  those  who  have 
less  than  thyself.  So  shall  ye  use  your  talent,  and  it 


98          PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

shall  bring  forth  a  rich  reward  to  thee  in  thy  life  to 
come/' 

"Realize  the  Truth  of  what  comes  to  thy  ministering 
guide  on  earth.  His  work  is  to  point  out  the  way  to  thy 
happiness  now,  and  through  the  ages  yet  to  pass.  As- 
sist him  by  all  means  in  thy  power,  so  that  he  and  our- 
selves may  come  to  thee  and  help  thee  to  reach  Home. 
Trust  to  thy  own  promptings  for  thou  art  realizing  past 
errors.  Seek  to  make  thy  mind  and  heart  available  to  our 
guidance  and  recognize  the  truth  that  we  can  communi- 
cate and  that  we  love  thee  well.  Foster  all  noble  inclina- 
tions, affections,  and  sentiments.  Let  your  aspirations 
be  of  the  highest  and  so  fit  yourselves  that  when  this 
life  ends,  ye  may  be  able  to  rejoin  those  who  have  gone 
before  and  are  preparing  the  home  which  thou  hast  al- 
ready begun  to  build  in  the  Summerland." 

"Spirits  are  constantly  teaching  you  by  the  thoughts 
they  implant.  If  ye  understand  not,  ask  thy  guide  to 
tell  thee.  Let  your  soul  body  go  forth  to  seek  the  Light 
— the  First  Cause — the  Source  of  Love  and  Creation. 
Let  it  go  forth  pure  and  ready  to  learn.  Let  your 
thoughts  be  refined  by  the  fires  of  Spirit  thought,  so  that 
ye  may  be  fit  to  go  with  those  who  shall  meet  you  and 
go  with  you  on  the  pathway  ye  shall  traverse  toward 
the  abode  of  those  who  are  in  the  spirit  realms.  Realize 
that  anything  done  in  life  that  is  contrary  to  the  physi- 
cal laws  of  God  will  cause  ye  to  suffer  in  body,  and  that 
the  penalty  of  neglect  to  fulfill  the  laws  he  has  made  to 
govern  the  Universe,  and  all  that  therein  is,  shall  also 
bring  its  own  punishment.  Develop  thy  intellect.  Be 
not  troubled  by  the  ills  of  earth.  Let  thy  nature  seek 
affinity  with  the  radiant  beings  of  the  upper  spheres. 
So  shalt  thou  see  them  and  walk  with  them  in  the  realms 
ye  are  unable  to  see  until  thy  spiritual  eyes  be  permitted 
to  open  and  behold  in  all  splendor." 

* '  Everybody  that  the  Divine  One  has  placed  in  any  of 
His  worlds  contains  somewhat  of  the  Divinity  himself. 
What  you  call  Spirit.  If  he  be  Divine  and  ever  living, 


HELL  FIRE  Is  NOT  LITERAL  99 

that  which  he  sent  into  the  material  may  live,  for  it 
cannot  perish.  Therefore,  when  the  most  wicked  pass 
from  life,  they  are  given  a  chance  to  live  and  learn  and 
work  out  the  regeneration  of  soul  until  the  spirit  is 
freed  from  evil  and  fitted  to  return  to  Him  who  gave  it 
life." 

1  i  No  longer  canst  thou  sow  the  seeds  in  a  material  gar- 
den, but  in  doing  so  in  the  past  thou  hast  been  learning 
of  God's  plan  and  that  the  laws  of  nature  are  all  in 
harmony  and  beauty,  and  mean  life  and  light  to  come. 
Natural  laws  cannot  be  broken  without  suffering!  The 
harmonious  relations  of  life  are  like  the  strings  of  an  in- 
strument, sweet  and  vibrant  to  soul  ond  body,  when  in 
accord  with  the  music  of  the  heavenly  spheres.  Let  but 
a  cord  be  unstrung  by  doubt,  fear,  unbelief,  selfishness 
or  distrust  and  nature's  laws  are  broken!  life  is  threat- 
ened in  the  body  and  the  soul  spirit  is  unable  to  react  or 
control  the  mental  portion  of  the  human  body  by  reason 
of  the  physical  tension.  Hence,  obey  nature's  laws 
and  let  health  of  body  prepare  thy  heart  and  mind  and 
soul  to  put  on  the  radiant  effulgence  that  is  to  shine 
through  the  fleshly  covering  and  reveal  to  mankind  the 
sunshine  of  the  brighter  realms  working  unseen  there- 
in." 

"Youth  understands  not  that  they  are  but  a  link  in  a 
chain.  Not  individually  of  moment  in  the  world,  but  an 
atom  of  dust  that  must  link  itself  with  other  atoms  of 
humanity  to  fulfill  the  laws  of  Nature's  God.  Teach, 
therefore,  that  a  lad,  or  a  man,  is  responsible,  person- 
ally, for  his  development  of  those  faculties  bestowed 
upon  him,  not  merely  to  himself,  but  to  those  who 
brought  him  into  the  world  in  the  first  place,  then  to 
those  who  are  brought  into  association  with  him ;  through 
them,  his  moral  tendencies,  his  truthfulness  ,thoughtful 
unselfishness,  self-sacrifice  it  may  be,  his  obedience  in  all 
things,  develop  harmony,  efficiency,  loving  thoughts,  and 
a  kindly  disposition  that  gives  him  self  respect  and  power 


100        PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

for  good  in  the  world.  He  becomes  a  strong  link  in  God's 
chain  of  training  to  that  personal  responsibility  that 
leads  to  understanding  that  he  is  vital  to  the  good  of 
mankind  and  a  trustee  to  carry  out  the  will  of  the  Di- 
vine Creator." 


ONE  DOZEN  POINTED  PITHY  PARAGRAPHS 

Do  you  BELIEVE  in  a  revengeful  God?—  I  KNOW 
a  Loving  One! 

Do  you  BELIEVE  in  a  literal  burning  Hell  ?  There 
is  no  such  place. 

Do  you  BELIEVE  God  made  a  Devil  to  punish  man  ? 
The  Church  developed  the  Devil. 

Do  you  BELIEVE  in  Infant  Damnation?  Christ 
taught  the  opposite. 

Do  you  BELIEVE  in  the  shedding  of  Blood  ?  That 
is  Paganism  revived. 

Do  you  BELIEVE  that  Dead  Bodies  shall  rise  again? 
Not  the  body  physical. 

Do  you  BELIEVE  God's  tongue  is  tied?  God  is 
Omnipotent. 

Do  you  BELIEVE  in  Right-doing  —  just  for  a  reward? 
That  is  Selfishness. 

Do  you  BELIEVE  in  Justice  because  it  is  God's  at- 
tribute? That  is  manly. 

Do  you  BELIEVE  in  the  Brotherhood  of  Man?  That 
is  Christian  and  true. 

Do  you  BELIEVE  that  a  just  God  would  cause  the 
"Fall  of  Man?"  That  is  unjust. 

Do  you  BELIEVE  that  the  Church  of  today  prac- 
tices True  Christianity?  It  does  not. 


SPIRITUALISM  IS  NOT  OF  THE  DEVIL 

CERTAIN  class  of  church  folks  still  go  on  with 
the  cry  that  Spiritualism  is  the  deceiving 
POWER  OF  THE  DEVIL ;  they  quote  the  Bib- 
lical reference  to  the  Woman  of  Endor,  and  conclude  by 
saying  that  it  is  wicked  to  communicate;  they  want  to 
let  it  go,  and  rest  satisfied  at  that!  But  such  people 
seem  to  ignore  the  most  important  fact,  and  that  is — 
that  SAMUEL  TOLD  THE  TRUTH  TO  KING  SAUL 
ABOUT  THE  DESTRUCTION  OF  HIS  KINGDOM, 
AND  TOLD  ABOUT  THE  DEATH  ON  THE  MOR- 
ROW, OF  HIMSELF  AND  HIS  SONS;  ALSO  THE 
DELIVERANCE  OF  ISRAEL  INTO  THE  HANDS 
OF  THE  PHILISTINES. 

The  Bible  says  that  Samuel  also  told  Saul,  '  'Tomor- 
row shalt  thou  and  thy  sons  be  with  me!"  Is  not  this 
proof,  by  Biblical  words,  that  we  CAN  actually  com- 
municate with  the  dead?  That  the  spirit  form  of 
Samuel  told  the  truth  to  the  bodily  Saul;  it  follows 
naturally,  that  if  as  recorded,  Saul  and  his  sons  were 
dead  to  earth  matters,  or  with  Samuel  the  next  day  in 
the  spirit  world,  then  Samuel  was  not  inert  in  the  grave 
and  unconscious,  as  the  orthodox  church  would  have  us 
believe,  but  that  a  spiritual  Samuel  was  alive  some- 
where; a  thinking,  conscious  entity,  able  to  come  back 
and  remind  Saul  that  he  had  disobeyed  God 's  commands, 
and  give  him  knowledge  (a  test),  that  he  was  to  die, 
with  his  sons,  the  next  day!  According  to  the  Bible, 
THE  SPIRIT  MESSAGE  PROVED  TRUE. 

Up  to  this  time  there  had  been  no  so-called  Resurrec- 
tion Day,  yet  Samuel  WAS  conscious,  and  evidently  knew 

[101] 


102*       FESK-r  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

what  Saul  was  doing  on  the  earth  plane.  Wake  up,  you 
orthodox  folks,  and  get  your  brain  box  working.  Now, 
let  us  assume,  just  for  example,  that  Spiritualism  is 
wrong  de  facto;  and  that  evil  influences  only  can  re- 
turn ;  that  the  whole  thing  is  produced  by  the  power  of 
the  Devil.  Let's  consider  just  what  the  Devil  is! 
D — evil  spells  Devil,  and  God  is  equivalent  to  Good! 
To  a  reasoning  man  that  just  represents  the  positive 
and  negative  powers  of  the  Universe,  and  they  are 
Nature's  Laws,  and  indispensable  to  the  operation  of 
this  universe.  There  must  be  apparently  good  and  bad, 
heat  and  cold,  summer  and  winter,  thick  and  thin,  long 
and  short,  darkness  and  light;  just  as  there  must  be 
two  ends  to  a  pole.  Light  would  not  be  appreciated 
without  darkness,  nor  the  summer  sun  without  winter. 
There  would  be  no  exquisite  pleasure  without  temporary 
pain.  Harmony  is  rarely  appreciated  without  the  pos- 
sibility of  discord.  No  joy  is  greater  than  that  AFTER 
sorrow.  Neither  is  there  realization  of  Good  without 
Evil  (or  THE  D-E-V-I-L).  Good,  would  not  be  a 
realism  without  the  evidence  of  Evil. 

Being  that  the  Orthodox  church  claims  the  Holy  Bible 
to  be  the  absolute  infallible  Word  of  God,  then  let  us 
study  that  Book  on  the  subject  of  the  POWER  OF  THE 
DEVIL,  in  any  reference  it  may  have  to  Spiritualism. 
In  Numbers;  12:6,  we  read,  "And  he  said,  hear  now  my 
word.  If  there  be  a  Prophet  among  you,  I,  the  Lord, 
will  make  myself  known  unto  him  in  a  VISION,  and 
will  speak  unto  him  in  A  DREAM. ' '  Now,  if  our  Ortho- 
dox friends  really  believe  their  Bible  is  infallible,  we 
have  here  the  Lord's  own  promise  that  He  WOULD  com- 
municate; then,  our  Orthodox  friends,  to  be  logical, 
must  consider  that  God  is  an  Evil  Spirit.  Either  that 
is  a  fact,  or  their  Bible  is  not  infallible. 

Judges,  9:23.  "Then  God  sent  AN  EVIL  SPIRIT 
BETWEEN  ABIMELECH  AND  THE  MEN  OF 
SHECHEM,  AND  THE  MEN  OF  SHECHEM  DEALT 
TREACHEROUSLY  WITH  ABIMELECH." 


SPIRITUALISM  Is  NOT  OF  THE  DEVIL  103 

1st  Samuel,  16;  14  and  16:  "But  the  SPIRIT  OF 
THE  LORD  departed  from  Saul,"  AND  AN  EVIL 
SPIRIT  FROM  THE  LORD  TROUBLED  HIM.  "And 
Saul's  servants  said  unto  him,  "Behold  now  AN  EVIL 
SPIRIT  FROM  GOD  TROUBLETH  THEE.".  .  . 

1st  Samuel,  16 :23 :  "And  it  came  to  pass  WHEN  THE 
EVIL  SPIRIT  FROM  GOD  WAS  UPON  SAUL,  that 
David  took  a  harp  and  played  with  his  hand,  so  Saul 
was  refreshed  and  was  well,  and  the  evil  spirit  departed 
from  him." 

1st  Samuel,  18:10:  "And  it  came  to  pass  on  the 
morrow,  "THAT  THE  EVIL  SPIRIT  FROM  GOD 
CAME  UPON  SAUL  AND  HE  PROPHESIED  IN 
THE  MIDST  OF  THE  HOUSE." 

1st  Samuel,  19:19:  "AND  THE  EVIL  SPIRIT 
FROM  THE  LORD  WAS  UPON  SAUL  AS  HE  SAT 
IN  HIS  HOUSE  WITH  HIS  JAVELIN  IN  HIS 
HAND." 

Isaiah  45 ;  5,  6  and  7 :  "  I  am  the  LORD,  and  there  is 
none  else.  There  is  no  God  beside  me.  I  AM  THE 
LORD  AND  THERE  IS  NONE  ELSE.  I  FORM  THE 
LIGHT  AND  CREATE  DARKNESS.  I  MAKE 
PEACE  AND  CREATE  EVIL;  I,  THE  LORD,  DO 
ALL  THESE  THINGS." 

1st  Kings,  22:23:  "Now,  therefore,  behold  THE 
LORD  HATH  PUT  A  LYING  SPIRIT  IN  THE 
MOUTH  OF  ALL  THY  PROPHETS,  AND  THE 
LORD  HATH  SPOKEN  EVIL  CONCERNING 
THEE."  1st  Chronicles,  21,  15:  "AND  GOD  SENT 
AN  ANGEL  TO  JERUSALEM  TO  DESTROY  IT." 

And  in  the  New  Testament,  1st  John,  4-1,  we  read: 
"Beloved,  believe  not  every  Spirit,  BUT  TRY  THE 
SPIRITS  WHETHER  THEY  ARE  OF  GOD;  BE- 
CAUSE MANY  FALSE  PROPHETS  HAVE  GONE 
OUT  INTO  THE  WORLD."  Hebrews  1-14:  "ARE 
THEY  NOT  ALL  MINISTERING  SPIRITS,  SENT 
FORTH  TO  MINISTER  FOR  THEM  THAT  SHALL 
BE  HEIRS  OF  SALVATION?" 


104        PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

Therefore,  if  the  Bible  be  true  and  infallible,  it  would 
appear  that  EVIL  SPIRITS  ABE  FROM  GOD,  so 
why  should  they  question  this  phase  of  Spiritualism  ? 
We  are  justified  in  assuming  that  if  God  be  omnipotent, 
and  does  not  make  any  mistakes,  he  sends  the  evil  spirits 
back  to  fulfill  some  good  purpose.  Such  a  good  purpose 
would  apparently  be  to  have  spirits  of  Orthodox  church 
members  come  back,  communicate  with  their  earth 
friends  and  give  THEM  the  proof  that  they  live,  and  are 
not  asleep  awaiting  Gabriel's  blast  of  the  trumpet  on 
the  Resurrection  Morn.  And  get  this  point,  they  must 
also  admit  that  if  only  evil  spirits  CAN  come  back,  then 
by  their  own  Bible  account,  Samuel  came  back  spe- 
cially to  tell  the  truth  to  King  Saul.  He  also  gave  him 
a  "spirit  test"  that  came  true  the  very  next  day,  though 
they  insist  that  an  evil  spirit  cannot  tell  the  truth.  If 
the  account  is  correct  then,  Samuel  must  have  been  evil, 
because  HE  came  back ;  or,  if  the  apparition  was  a  good 
spirit,  then  both  good  and  bad  spirits  can  communicate 
with  the  living  in  this  world,  and  give  them  true  tests. 
If  this  is  not  true,  then  the  Bible  IS  NOT  AS  INFAL- 
LIBLE as  the  theologians  claim. 

It  is  probable  that  some  persons  may  think  I  am  mis- 
taken, when  I  say  that  there  are  preachers  all  over  the 
land  who  are  spreading  these  untruths  broadcast.  It  is  a 
hard  matter  to  realize,  just  how  they  deduce  their  opin- 
ions, but  read  their  own  words:  Judge  Rutherford,  the 
successor  to  Pastor  Russell,  of  the  Bible  Students'  Asso- 
ciation, said:  "Demons  in  the  atmosphere  near  the 
earth,  and  not  the  Spirits  of  the  dead,  are  behind  this 
wave  of  Spiritualism  now  spreading  over  the  country. 
It  is  true  that  Mediums  hear  voices  delivering  messages 
to  them,  and  see  visions ;  and  there  is  automatic  writing, 
but  it  is  not  the  spirits  of  the  dead !  The  dead  are  dead, 
and  therefore  cannot  talk  until  resurrection !  They  are 
asleep,  and  have  no  consciousness.  Spiritualism  is  the 
Devil's  own  faith."  This  is  merely  Judge  Rutherford's 


SPIRITUALISM  Is  NOT  OF  THE  DEVIL  105 

personal  opinion.  He  has  no  basis  for  laying  down  such 
an  emphatic  assertion. 

Arthur  Brisbane  writes  the  following  about  Spirit- 
ualism: "All  the  nonsense  of  Spiritualism,  preying  on 
the  pitiful  longings  of  weak  or  tired  minds,  have  not 
produced  the  value  of  a  two-cent  stamp,  and  never  will ! 
If  the  dead  could  talk  after  the  interesting  experiment 
of  dying,  they  would  send  better  messages  back  than 
'Mamma  is  happy.  It  is  lovely  over  here.  Love  to 
Willie.'  " 

According  to  the  Right  Reverend  James  McGean,  of 
the  Church  of  St.  Peter,  of  New  York  City,  "Table 
Tippings,  Ouija  Board  demonstrations  and  all  other  spir- 
itualistic seances  are  forbidden  to  Catholics."  The  Rev. 
Alexis  Cuneen,  in  a  sermon  in  the  same  church,  places 
Spiritualism  and  devil  worship  in  the  same  category.  If 
this  be  true,  they  should  be  careful  not  to  advertise  the 
fact,  for  Peter,  one  of  the  beloved  disciples  of  Jesus,  and 
the  rock  upon  which  the  Catholic  Church  claims  it  is 
built,  was  what  the  people  of  today  call  a  medium,  and 
talked  WITH  spirits ;  the  proof  of  which  I  have  quoted  in 
full  from  the  "Catholic"  Bible,  on  a  preceding  page. 

If  it  had  not  been  for  "the  foolishness  of  Spiritual- 
ism" (as  Mr.  Brisbane  calls  it),  and  for  the  Apostle 
Peter's  psychic  ability,  there  would  not  have  been  a 
foundation  on  which  the  Catholic  heirarchy  could  place 
their  rock.  Had  Mr.  Brisbane  been  writing  editorials 
at  that  time,  he  would  have  advised  Peter  to  give  some- 
thing better  than  the  nonsense  about  "Kill  and  Eat." 
But  beyond  all  question  the  Scientific  fact  remains, — 
that  communication  with  the  spirit  world  is  true !  Would 
the  Saints  have  knowledge  of  conditions,  or  know  how 
or  when  to  forgive  sins  if  there  was  not  some  form  of 
actual  communication?  For  they  claim  there  has  been 
no  Resurrection  Morn  as  yet.  Mr.  Brisbane,  however, 
comes  out  with  the  cry  that  "All  the  nonsense  of  Spir- 
itualism has  not  produced  the  value  of  a  two  cent  stamp 
and  never  will."  In  spite  of  his  dogmatic  statement, 


106        PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

Spiritualism  possesses  a  vitality  that  will  go  on  teaching 
(and  proving)  that  actual  communication  with  " those 
beyond,  ' '  is  possible,  just  as  the  Catholic  Church  teaches. 

Now  conies  Dr.  J.  A.  Gaughey,  a  state  secretary  of 
the  Interchurch  World  Movement,  who  shows  his  lack 
of  knowledge  on  the  subject,  and  gives  evidence  in  favor 
of  Spiritualism  when  he  says:  "Any  message  ever  re- 
ceived on  the  Ouija  Board,  or  Planchette,  came  from 
the  devil  and  not  from  God.  It  is  harmful.  God  has 
given  us  no  hope  to  believe  that  communication  with 
the  dead  is  possible.  Prayer,  and  the  reading  of  the 
Bible  are  our  two  means  of  consolation." 

What  Spiritualist  ever  said  that  Ouija  messages  are 
from  God?  No  profound  student  or  investigator  makes 
such  a  claim.  Ella  Wheeler  Wilcox  said  her  messages 
on  the  Ouija  came  from  "Her  Robert."  She  did  not 
say  they  came  from  God.  This  gentleman  closes  his 
personal  opinion  with  a  remark  about  reading  the  Bible, 
and  no  doubt  he  has  read  the  portions  referring  to  the 
Transfiguration  on  the  Mount,  where  Moses  and  Elias, 
both  dead  over  a  thousand  years,  are  stated  to  have 
talked  with  Jesus,  in  the  presence  of  Peter,  James  and 
John.  He  cannot  possibly  have  failed  to  read  about 
Peter 's  trance;  or  about  Jesus  materializing  in  the  up- 
per room,  and  appearing  amongst  the  Apostles  WHEN 
THE  DOORS  WERE  LOCKED,  (for  fear  of  the  Jews). 
He  has  probably  read  the  Revelation  from  first  to  last, 
which  according  to  the  Bible,  was  given  to  John  on  the 
Isle  of  Patmos,  while  IN  a  trance.  Will  he,  or  any 
Bible  student,  still  deny  that  communication  is  not 
proven  1 

Personally,  I  think  those  preachers  who  teach  these 
untruths  are  the  "False  Prophets  who  have  gone  out 
into  the  world."  It  seems  extraordinary,  after  all  these 
positive  Biblical  proofs  that  spirits  can  and  DO  com- 
municate with  the  living,  that  these  teachers  of  Ortho- 
doxy continue  to  teach  dogmas  that  are  not  only  illogi- 
cal, but  untrue,  thereby  denying  their  own  Biblical  evi- 


SPIRITUALISM  Is  NOT  OF  THE  DEVIL  107 

dence:   stultifying  their  own  assertions  regarding  the 
foundation  of  their  religious  belief. 

The  scientific  study  of  Spiritualism  has  led  men  of 
European  fame  to  see  the  Light  and  the  following  in- 
vestigators have  verified  its  phenomena : 

Those  who  think  that  Spiritualism  is  confined  to 
America  should  read  the  recorded  reports  of  investi- 
gators throughout  Europe.  A  few  of  these  may  be 
mentioned,  but  thousands  of  other  eminent  men,  (many 
clergymen  amongst  them),  have  verified  for  themselves 
the  phenomena  of  Spiritualism. 

One  clerical  reference:  The  Rev.  Ernest  Jenkins, 
M.  A.,  Congregational  minister  of  Leeds,  England,  at 
the  funeral  of  Lieutenant  Harry  Scholefield,  "died  of 
wounds, "  said:  "Harry  Scholefield  not  only  lives,  but 
is  in  conscious  and  intimate  touch  with  us  here.  He  has 
NOT  passed  to  a  land  far,  far  away,  but  is  near  at  hand. ' ' 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Theodore  Parker,  of  London,  England, 
ex-President  Wilson  (referring  to  our  soldiers),  and 
hundreds  of  learned,  conscientious  men  have  voiced 
similar  sentiments  regarding  our  loved  ones  who  have 
ascended  the  ladder,  and  gone  higher! 

France — Flammarion,  Prof.  Fournier  D'Albe,  Prof. 
Le  Bon. 

Germany — Baron  Von  Schrenck,  Notzing,  M.  D. 

Austria — Sigmund   Freud  of  Vienna. 

Russia — Count  Alexander  Aksakoff,  Count  Solovovo. 

Poland — Dr.  Ochorowicz. 

Italy — Professors  Lombroso  and  Morselli. 

Holland— Dr.  Malta,  Dr.  Zaalberg  Van  Zelst. 

Belgium — Prof.  Delboeuf,  Maurice  Maeterlinck. 

America  has  produced  no  greater  student  than  Dr. 
James  H.  Hyslop,  and  in  Canada  Dr.  John  King. 

England. 

Sir  Oliver  Lodge,  Sir  Conan  Doyle,  Dr.  Ennemoser, 
Lord  Dewar,  Sir  Wm.  Earnshaw  Cooper,  Rt.  Hon. 
Arthur  Balfour,  Sir  Wm.  Barrett,  and  Sir  Wm.  Crookes, 


108        PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

who  spent  years  in  painstaking  investigation  in  his  own 
home,  and  elsewhere.  Professor  and  Mrs.  Sidwick,  of  the 
British  Psychical  Research  Society,  investigated  thou- 
sands of  cases,  and,  like  all  those  scientific  open-minded 
truth  seekers,  published  their  conclusions  that  Life  AND 
remembrance  continue  after  the  mortal  body  has  ceased 
to  pulsate  in  earth  life. 

EXPLOSION  OP  THE  LUNACY  BOGEY 
Nothing  can  be  more  discreditable  to  the  orthodox 
preachers  and  their  followers  than  the  allegation  so  often 
made  that  Spiritualism  is  productive  of  insanity,  and  to 
a  marked  degree.  This  is  very  discreditable  not  only 
because  it  is  untrue,  but  also  because  these  tellers  of 
fables  must  be  fully  aware,  if  they  depend  upon  statis- 
tics, that  facts  absolutely  fail  to  support  the  accusation. 
If  their  statements  are  true,  why  do  they  not  produce 
the  evidential  proof? 

In  the  September  number,  1919,  of  "The  Harbinger 
of  Light,"  Melbourne,  Australia,  is  the  following  ex- 
tract about  this  condition  as  it  exists  there  and  in  Great 
Britain.  "No  one  in  Great  Britain  or  in  Australasia, 
will  venture  to  supply  these  figures.  Why?  Simply 
because  they  do  not  exist.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  many 
of  these  traducers  have  made  a  thorough  search  of  the 
records  of  asylums  for  the  insane,  in  the  hope  of  dis- 
covering some  semblance  of  evidence  with  which  to  bol- 
ster up  their  claims.  We  hurl  the  slander  back  in  their 
teeth  and  defy  them  to  prove  the  charge.  There  has 
never  been  such  interest  in  Spiritualism  in  Great  Britain 
as  during  the  past  few  years. 

"  It  is  described  as  having  taken  on  the  proportions  of 
a  'mania.'  If,  therefore,  a  study  of  the  subject  is  pro- 
ductive of  madness  it  would  surely  manifest  itself  in  the 
official  returns.  But  what  do  we  find?  Instead  of  in- 
sanity being  on  the  increase,  it  has  actually  decreased 
during  the  past  few  years — for  the  first  time  since  1859. 
According  to  the  'Report  of  the  British  Board  of  Con- 


SPIRITUALISM  Is  NOT  OF  THE  DEVIL  109 

trol,"  there  were  134,029  lunatics  under  control  in  Eng- 
land and  Wales  at  the  beginning  of  1917,  which  showed 
a  decrease  of  3,159  on  the  figures  of  the  previous  year, 
while  in  1915  there  was  a  decline  of  3,278  cases,  these 
being  the  only  cases  since  1859  when  the  Lunacy  Re- 
turns have  failed  to  show  a  rise."  Do  these  figures 
demonstrate  that  Spiritualism  is  filling  the  asylums? 
If  Spiritualism  has  influenced  the  matter  at  all,  does  it 
not  rather  tend  to  show  that  it  has  been  in  the  very  oppo- 
site direction?  As  Mr.  Arthur  Hill,  who  is  recognized 
as  one  of  the  most  authoritative  writers  on  the  various 
phases  of  Spiritualism  in  England  today,  points  out  in 
his  comprehensive  work — 'Spiritualism,  Its  History, 
Phenomena  and  Doctrine' — the  records  of  the  insane 
asylums  would  almost  seem  to  indicate  that  the  conso- 
lations of  spiritualistic  beliefs  are  saving  from  insanity 
many  who  would  otherwise  have  lost  their  reason  through 
grief.  Several  persons  have  told  me  that  in  their  own 
case,  the  NEW  KNOWLEDGE  HAD  SAVED  THEM 
FROM  MENTAL  DISASTER.  It  is  quite  likely  that 
there  are  insane  Spiritualists,  as  there  are  insane  peo- 
ple of  all  colors,  races  and  sects,  but  it  has  never  yet 
been  proven,  or  even  considered  probable,  that  insanity 
occurs  in  a  higher  proportion  among  Spiritualists  than 
among  other  people.  I  know,  however,  of  several  cases 
of  religious  melancholia  brought  on  by  being  repeatedly 
told  "that  they  will  suffer  everlasting  torture  if  they 
do  not  believe  as  they  are  ordered  to ' ' ;  but  I  have  never 
known  a  Spiritualist  who  has  become  insane,  and  my 
experience  has  been  confirmed  by  several  magistrates 
who  sign  certificates  of  Lunacy.  Testimony  of  one  of 
them  will  be  found  in  the  "Two  Worlds"  for  August 
24th,  1917,  where  Mr.  Jones  offers  £100  to  any  charity 
if  Dr.  Robertson  could  substantiate  his  statements  about 
Spiritualism  causing  insanity.  The  challenge  was  not 
accepted.  Sir  Arthur  Conan  Doyle  states  that  "as  a 
result  of  investigation  in  an  American  State,  it  was 
shown  that  out  of  13,500  lunacy  patients  there  were 


110        PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

FOUR  SPIRITUALISTS  and  215  CLERGYMEN,"  and 
logically  added  "It  is  time  that  this  nonsense  ceased." 
It  has  been  going  on  for  half  a  century  and  there  has 
never  been  a  word  of  truth  in  it.  Lord  Halifax,  a  High 
Churchman  in  England,  some  time  ago  had  the  temerity 
to  parade  this  ridiculous  insane  bogey  in  the  course 
of  a  lecture,  and  was  brusquely  replied  to  by  the  Rev. 
Charles  Tweedale,  F.  R.  G.  S.,  vicar  of  Weston,  York- 
shire, who  in  his  pamphlet,  "Primitive  Christianity  and 
Modern  Psychic  Phenomena,"  writes:  "This  falsehood, 
this  cry  of  *  ware  madness, '  was  raised  forty  years  ago, — 
and  killed  by  statistics  as  soon  as  raised.  I  can  obtain 
them  for  his  lordship  if  he  desires  it.  It  was  then  found, 
that  in  the  asylums  from  which  the  statistics  were  ob- 
tained there  were  very  few  persons  suffering  from  mad- 
ness by  devotion  to  psychic  things,  but  that  there  were 
many  cases  of  religious  mania  among  the  orthodox  pa- 
tients. Such  is  the  state  of  things  today.  Why  does 
Lord  Halifax  not  inveigh  loudly  against  Christianity 
because  of  the  many  cases  of  religious  mania  among  the 
orthodox?"  To  again  disprove  the  lunacy  falsehood 
beyond  England  and  America,  let  us  ask  the  Italian 
Scientists.  We  find  that  Prof.  Morselli,  Director  of  the 
Clinic  of  Mental  Diseases  at  the  University  of  Genoa, 
declares, — "Cases  of  madness  among  those  devoted  to 
psychic  phenomena  are  VERY  RARE.  In  my  long 
experience  among  thousands  of  patients,  I  do  not  re- 
member more  than  four  or  five." 

There  is  one  thing  you  may  be  sure  of.  The  preach- 
ers have  never  told  you  just  how  many  have  been  saved 
from  MENTAL  unbalance,  by  the  hope-inspiring  gospel 
of  Spiritualism.  Millions  bereaved  by  the  war,  have 
been  saved  from  mental  derangement  by  the  knowl- 
edge that  their  boy,  or  their  father,  or  their  brother, 
or  their  husband,  is  NOT  dead,  but  alive  in  another  form, 
functioning  in  another  media  and  can  be  with  them  at 
times;  that  they  are  not  dead  or  beyond  God's  guiding 
Love  in  a  dark  grave  under  the  sod.  Let  us,  however, 


SPIRITUALISM  Is  NOT  OF  THE  DEVIL  111 

consider  official  and  definite  statistics ;  absolutely  reliable 
data,  as  to  the  number  of  people  who  have  become  men- 
tally deranged,  possibly  through  the  prospect  of  spend- 
ing eternity  in  an  orthodox  hell  fire.  A  close  inquiry 
of  this  kind  would  startle  the  country. 

After  hearing  many  statements  made  from  the  pulpits 
of  our  orthodox  churches  in  Los  Angeles,  and  seeing 
accounts  in  the  daily  papers  of  the  great  numbers  who 
were  going  insane  by  taking  up  the  study  of  things 
Occult,  I  thought  that  I  must  have  the  statistics  from 
the  authorities  of  the  State  of  California,  for  I  could  not 
believe  these  indefinite  reports  were  true.  It  is  to  be 
regretted  that  the  statements  of  positive  preachers  can- 
not always  be  relied  upon,  so  I  applied  to  the  California 
State  Commission  in  Lunacy,  at  Sacramento,  Calif.,  of 
which  Governor  "William  D.  Stephens  is  President ;  Frank 
C.  Jordan,  Secretary  of  State;  U.  S.  Webb,  Attorney- 
General;  Wilfred  H.  Kellogg,  M.D.,  Secretary  State 
Board  of  Health ;  F.  W.  Hatch,  M.D.,  General  Superin- 
tendent, and  Senator  E.  S.  Birdsall,  Secretary,  in  an 
effort  to  get  the  truth  about  this  much  discussed  sub- 
ject. The  answer  to  my  letter  follows: 

"Mr.  James  McGregor  Beatty,  Los  Angeles,  Calif. 
March  25,  1920.  Dear  Sir, — Beg  to  acknowledge  receipt 
of  your  letter  of  March  14th,  which  I  found  on  my  re- 
turn from  a  trip.  While  I  have  not  seen  the  published 
account  attributed  to  me  in  reference  to  the  Ouija  Board, 
I  have  no  doubt  that  it  was  the  result  of  an  expression 
of  personal  opinion  given  by  me  to  a  newspaper  re- 
porter, who  was  in  the  office.  Through  newspaper  pub- 
licity, attention  has  been  called  to  some  cases  where 
certain  people  were  committed  to  state  institutions,  due 
to  excitement  brought  on  by  the  unreasonable  indul- 
gence in  the  use  of  the  Ouija  Board.  Probably,  however, 
this  was  simply  a  contributory  cause,  and  WE  HAVE 
NO  RECORDS  COMPILED  ON  WHICH  WE  COULD 
BASE  COMPARISON  OF  PATIENTS  COMMITTED 
TO  OUR  STATE  HOSPITALS,  IN  REFERENCE  TO 


112        PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

THEIR  RELIGIOUS  BELIEFS;  and  in  fact,  we  do 
not  believe  that  such  comparison  would  be  fair  or  very 
authentic,  on  account  of  the  fact  that  a  great  number  of 
patients  committed  to  the  Superior  Courts  are  not  very 
clear  as  to  what  particular  denomination  they  affiliated 
with,  while  in  most  instances  our  commitments  purport 
to  give  the  patients  religious  affiliation,  THIS  DATA 
IS  MORE  OR  LESS  UNRELIABLE.  Personally,  I 
HAVE  NEVER  NOTICED  THAT  PATIENTS  PRO- 
FESSING SPIRITUALISTIC  BELIEF  PREDOM- 
INATED, AND  IN  FACT  HAVE  NEVER  HEARD 
THE  ACCUSATION  THAT  SPIRITUALISM  WAS 
SENDING  PEOPLE  INSANE.  Very  often  after  in- 
sanity (which  is  nothing  more  nor  less  than  a  mental 
sickness)  has  taken  place,  patients  develop  hallucina- 
tions and  other  manifestations  in  reference  to  various 
forms  of  religion,  the  hereafter,  electricity,  wireless,  and 
in  fact,  other  subjects  not  well  understood  by  the  aver- 
age mind.  Trusting  this  letter,  which  to  a  certain  extent 
must  be  superficial,  answers  your  communication  suf- 
ficiently, I  am  yours  respectfully,  E.  S.  Birdsall,  Sec- 
retary. ' ' 

Again  we  hurl  the  Positive  Preachers'  untruths  back 
in  their  teeth.  Here  are  the  State  authorities  of  Cali- 
fornia backing  up  my  statements  that  Spiritualism  is 
NOT  sending  people  insane,  despite  the  opinions  of  the 
preachers  who  get  so  used  to  repeating  fables  that  they 
sometimes  forget  and  try  to  slip  one  over  that  they 
cannot  prove.  I  wonder  where  they  get  their  statistics. 
They  are  not  very  good  at  figures,  for  they  say  that  this 
old  world  is  only  six  thousand  years  old,  despite  the 
fact  that  Science  dispelled  that  fable  long  ago. 

In  a  newspaper  account  on  March  13,  1920,  we  read : 
' '  Ouija  mania  is  an  old  disease  under  a  new  name.  People 
went  crazy  over  such  puzzles  as  "Pigs  in  Clover "  and 
the  14-15-16  Puzzle,  declared  Senator  Birdsall  of  the 
State  Lunacy  Commission  today.  The  added  promi- 
nence of  the  Ouija  Board,  though  the  publicity  given 


SPIRITUALISM  Is  NOT  OF  THE  DEVIL  113 

to  spiritualists  by  such  men  as  Sir  Oliver  Lodge  and 
Conan  Doyle, "  said  Birdsall,  "has  stimulated  interest 
in  Spiritualism,  but  those  people  who  have  gone  insane 
over  the  toy  were  already  lacking  in  perspective,  and 
were  en  route  to  where  they  finally  landed." 

Dr.  F.  W.  Hatch,  of  the  Commission  says  that, 
"THOSE  WHO  WENT  CRAZY  OVER  THE  OUIJA 
BOARD  WOULD  HAVE  GONE  INSANE  SOONER 
OR  LATER!  THEY  DIDN'T  HAVE  FAR  TO  GO." 
So  let  us  ask  the  clergy  to  stop  ' '  chasing  rainbows, ' '  for- 
getting fallacies,  and  get  down  to  bed-rock;  stick  close 
to  truth,  learn  the  facts,  listen  to  the  dictates  of  com- 
mon sense,  remembering,  it  is  good  to  seek  the  truth, 
but  IT  IS  BETTER  TO  KNOW  TRUTH  AND  FOL- 
LOW IT. 

I  hope  I  shall  not  be  forced  into  a  detailed  investiga- 
tion ;  a  searching  of  data  and  statistical  proof,  in  defense 
of  the  truth  about  this  subject ;  I  shall  continue  to  believe 
such  an  investigation  unnecessary,  unless  this  untruth 
is  continuously  dragged  out  before  the  unenlightened 
mind  of  those  orthodox  who  will  believe  almost  any- 
thing told  them  in  regard  to  the  awful  mental  dangers 
of  spiritualism.  Read  here  of  a  case  which  came  under 
the  personal  observation  of  the  author,  and  the  signer 
of  this  statement  is  well  known  to  him.  The  knowl- 
edge of  spiritualism  gave  help  and  comfort  denied  by 
Orthodoxy ;  and  by  the  Truth  that  Cheers  she  was  lifted 
up  and  out  of  a  Slough  of  Despond.  Mrs.  Pedigo's  own 
words  follow: 

"I  take  great  pleasure  in  submitting  the  following 
statement  to  the  public.  I  was  raised  an  Orthodox, 
but  through  the  death  of  my  only  son,  I  was  brought 
into  Spiritualism.  He  was  twenty-two  years  old,  just 
entering  a  bright,  promising  manhood.  He  was  my 
pride,  my  joy.  He  met  his  death  under  very  peculiar 
circumstances  on  January  31,  1917,  at  Winkleman, 
Arizona.  Receiving  the  telegram  stating  that  he  had 
been  killed,  I  went  to  Arizona  and  laid  him  to  rest  in 


114        PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

that  little  mining  town.  I  came  home  heart-broken,  for 
according  to  my  earlier  teaching,  my  boy  was  lost.  I 
could  not  become  reconciled  to  his  death.  I  wanted  to 
die  and  go  where  he  had  gone,  as  Heaven  without  my 
boy  would  not  be  Heaven  to  me.  I  was  fast  becoming  a 
mental  and  physical  wreck,  when  Spiritualism  rescued 
me  from  a  living  death.  Was  it  by  chance,  or  was  it 
a  higher  power  that  led  me  to  Mr.  George  Francis, 
pastor  of  the  Francis  Church  of  Truth,  Spiritualist? 
No!  It  was  not  chance,  and  I  now  realize  it  was  the 
spiritual  influence  of  my  departed  loved  ones  who  drew 
me  to  that  spot,  where  I  was  lifted  from  the  lowest 
depths  of  despair  to  a  high  pinnacle  of  hope.  Mr. 
Francis  asked  me  no  questions.  Following  is  the  mes- 
sage he  gave  me.  He  said :  '  You  have  a  son  in  spirit ; 
he  was  killed,  and  his  name  was  Frank/  He  told  me 
every  incident,  every  circumstance  connected  with  my 
son's  death,  just  as  it  was  told  to  me  at  Winkleman, 
Arizona.  I  asked  him  to  try  and  see  if  he  could  learn 
what  Frank  tried  to  say  when  he  was  passing  out.  Mr. 
Francis  went  under  control  and  said:  'I  tried  to  send 
a  message  to  my  dear  Mother,  but  every  time  I  tried  to 
speak  I  choked. 

11  'I  had  stock  and  wanted  her  to  have  it.  Tell  hor  to 
write  to  Babbett  at  Flagstaff.'  The  undertaker  at 
Winkleman  told  me  that  Frank  had  tried  to  say  some- 
thing just  as  he  was  passing  out,  but  every  time  he 
opened  his  mouth  he  choked.  This  message  lifted  a 
great  load  of  sorrow  from  my  heart,  and  proved  that 
my  boy  was  living  and  able  to  communicate  with  me 
through  a  medium.  This  caused  me  to  think,  for  Mr. 
Francis  did  not  know  me,  and  there  was  only  one  per- 
son in  Los  Angeles  besides  myself  who  knew  the  circum- 
stances under  which  my  boy  died. 

I  went  home  and  determined  to  investigate  for  myself. 
I  did  not  write  to  Babbett  then,  but  wrote  to  the  post- 
master, asking  him  if  there  was  any  person  in  or  near 
Flagstaff  by  the  name  of  Babbett.  He  answered,  'Yes.' 


SPIRITUALISM  Is  NOT  OF  THE  DEVIL  115 

I  went  back  to  the  medium  to  see  if  he  could  get  Bab- 
bett's  full  address.  He  took  up  his  pencil  and  wrote: 
'David  Babbett  Bros.,  Merchants,  Flagstaff,  Arizona.' 
I  wrote  to  this  address,  telling  Mr.  Babbett  I  had  learned 
that  my  son  had  stock  on  his  range,  and  I  asked  him  to 
investigate  for  me.  I  received  an  answer  to  this  letter, 
written  on  a  letter-head,  the  printing  of  which  was  a 
perfect  facsimile  of  the  address  given  me  by  the  medium. 
Mr.  Babbett  said  to  give  him  some  idea  of  what  my 
son's  stock  consisted,  where  located,  etc.,  and  he  would 
look  it  up  for  me.  I  again  went  to  the  medium  to  see 
if  he  could  help  find  out  these  things,  and  he  said  'Tell 
Mother  I  had  forty  horses  and  twenty  head  of  young 
cattle  on  the  Babbett  range,  in  northern  Arizona,  in  the 
care  of  (naming  the  man).  I  wrote  to  Babbett  again, 
giving  him  the  information.  He  again  answered,  tell- 
ing me  to  get  the  stock  brand,  if  possible.  Mr.  Francis 
later  took  out  his  pencil  and  drew  the  following  diagram 

of  the  brand later  I  got  in  touch  with  a  man  by 

the  name  of  -  -  who  claimed  to  be  a  friend  of 

Frank's,  and  who  said  he  was  sure  that  Frank  had  no 
less  than  thirty  horses  and  some  cattle,  and  that  if  I 
would  give  him  power-of-attorney,  authorizing  him  to 
search  for,  take  possession  of,  and  sell  said  stock  for  me, 
that  he  would  attend  to  it  for  me.  I  did  this,  thinking 
he  would  deal  fairly  with  me.  At  this  point  I  employed 
an  attorney  to  help  me.  I  could  get  no  more  letters 
from  this  man.  The  attorney  could  get  no  answers  to 
his  letters.  Finally  I  received  a  letter,  telling  me  that 
he  knew  nothing  about  the  cattle  or  the  brand.  My 
attorney  knew  that  evidence  obtained  from  the  spirit 
world  is  not  received  or  recognized  by  the  Courts  today, 
and  as  that  was  the  only  evidence  I  had,  we  could  do 
nothing,  so  I  had  to  lose  them  on  that  account. ' '  Signed, 
Mrs.  Viola  Wren  Pedigo,  738  West  16th  street,  Los 
Angeles,  Calif. 

One  of  our  great  spiritual  teachers  in  Los  Angeles, 
who  has  come   forward  for  the  Truth  of  Spirit  com- 


116        PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

munion,  and  the  knowledge  "that  the  two  worlds  are 
actually  one  to  those  who  will  have  it  so,"  is  Carl  Bron- 
son,  composer  and  teacher,  who  for  years  was  prepared 
by  guidance  to  give  out  to  the  world  The  Soul  of  Truth. 
Those  who  read  his  wonder  epic,  "Flow'r-of-the-Mist," 
recently  published,  will  know  that  "it  is  now  time  for 
the  beautiful  sweetness  of  Truth  to  shine  upon 
Humanity. ' ' 

Mr.  Bronson  was  for  many  years  the  director  of  a 
great  choir  in  a  Methodist  Church  of  Los  Angeles,  and 
he  has  held  similar  positions  in  nearly  every  great  de- 
nomination, and  has  been  prepared  through  years  for 
just  the  work  he  is  doing.  I  am  a  privileged  listener  to 
truth  from  his  lips,  when  a  group  of  students  gather 
for  this  purpose. 

His  close  personal  friendship  with  Ella  Wheeler  Wil- 
cox  was  not  a  matter  of  chance,  but  guidance  of  a  rare 
sort,  and  when  informed  of  the  author's  desire  to  give 
to  his  readers  some  of  the  beautiful  gems  of  Truth  from 
across  the  line,  the  following  messages  from  Mrs.  Wil- 
cox  were  given  him  for  publication  in  this  book,  and 
appear  just  as  they  were  written  through  the  hand  of 
Mr.  Bronson 's  daughter,  Ruth  Bronson. 

' '  Maude  is  here : 

1 '  Over  swaying  tree-tops  the  joyous  wind-spirits  dance, 
and  whisper  the  wonderful  secrets  of  other  lands  and 
worlds. 

"We,  here,  often  tend  toward  the  dancing  freedom 
of  the  winds  and  playful  tree-tops. 

"When  cradled  in  the  branches  of  some  tall  pine,  we 
feel  the  eternal  Life-Force  vibrating  through  the  veins 
of  the  tree's  majestic  being,  and  sense  the  great  living 
force  which  interweaves  man's  being  with  all  creation. 

"Astride  the  restless  steed  of  our  forces  ride  the 
planets  with  rein  in  check  and  crest  high. 

"The  sun-star  holds  the  fiery  forces  of  heat  in  the 
course  assigned  by  the  Master. 

"By  the  same  force  we  are  set  upon  our  course  of 


SPIRITUALISM  Is  NOT  OP  THE  DEVIL  117 

experience  and  upheld  by  an  unfailing  strength,  if  we 
but  take  into  our  beings  the  forces  of  burning,  eternal 
suns. 

"Penetrate  the  forests  of  human  souls  and  find  the 
same  desire  impelling  the  soul  on  to  its  perfection  of 
freedom  and  understanding. 

"This  desire  draws  into  the  being,  forces  which  other 
effort  cannot  command. 

"Long  has  the  Soul  energy  worked  within  the  Dark- 
ened chamber  of  earth  thought,  and  now  a  light  has 
dawned  which  shall  flood  all  darkened  places  of  earth, 
and  dispel  all  thoughts  of  darkness. 

"Maude  has  flown  to  other  duties,  and  so  I  must  go. 

— "Ella." 

Through  the  hand  of  Ruth  Bronson. 
March  1,  1921. 

"Maude  is  here;  I  was  proving  my  presence  with  a 
great  power.  Write  now  for  Mrs.  Wilcox.  Mrs.  Wil- 
cox  is  writing. 

"When  the  swift  thoughts  wing  their  flight,  the  four 
winds  are  far  outsped.  The  thought  has  wings  space- 
less, directing. 

"We  send  tender  reflections  to  our  beloved  ones,  and 
no  distance  can  divide  the  perfect  unity  of  the  thought 
if  we  are  fired  by  ardor  of  being. 

"Mountain  heights  affront  the  troops  of  thoughts 
sent  across  the  seas,  but  cannot  stay  them.  There  is  no 
material  of  earth  which  is  proof  against  the  penetration 
of  thought. 

"You  see  the  power  of  this  force,  which  men  use  as 
children  might  play  with  our  burning  forces.  Often 
unguarded,  we  permit  destructive  darts  to  leave  our 
thought  generator,  all  of  which  weaken  our  forces  of 
strength. 

"Now  the  world  is  at  its  dawn,  in  which  all  beings 
shall  be  Soul-conscious,  and  all  thoughts  guarded;  and 


118        PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

only  those  dispatched  which  have  building,  constructive 
forces  within.  — "Ella." 

Through  the  hand  of  Ruth  Bronson, 
March  8,  1921. 


Following   inspirational   poem  was  written   by   Carl 
Bronson  for  this  book: 

HOW  I  BEGAN  TO  SEE 

Tho'  I  did  sing  of  Truth  the  whole  day  long, 

I  could  not  find  an  ear  would  list  'my  song. 

And  so  I  sang  unto  the  stars  above, 

And  told  them  of  my  yearnings,  and  my  love. 

'Twas  thus  I  bore  the  sting  of  walking  lone; 

Of  knowing,  and  yet  living  all  unknown. 

Yet,  ever  persevering  with  my  rhyme, 

At  last  there  struck  within  my  soul  a  chime 

Like  to  that  of  the  Master's  pulsing  note; 

More  wond'rous  than  the  song  of  my  poor  throat. 

I  dared  not  guess,  at  first,  from  whence  it  came ; 

But  waited  long — until  I  heard  my  name 

Outwhispered  clear,  as  from  a  Heav'nly  throng. 

Ah!    Then  I  knew  the  portent  of  my  song, 

And  realized  I  had  not  sung  in  vain. 

It  matters  not  that  men  hear  not  your  strain: 

Ye  only  need  to  be  at  heart  sincere, 

To  have  God's  Angels  lend  a  list'ning  ear. 

— Carl  Bronson. 

Written  for  my  friend  and  fellow  pilgrim,  Beatty. 
Los  Angeles,  March  25,  1921. 


Before  closing  this  chapter  I  feel  it  a  duty  to  present 
to  my  readers  a  few  dictated  writings,  given  to  a  young 
man  now  living  in  Los  Angeles,  by  name  Oliver  G.  Wal- 
lace, who  is  publicly  well  known  as  a  great  musician  and 
popular  song  writer,  and  now  holding  a  position  as 
organist  in  one  of  the  largest  theatres  in  Los  Angeles, 
although  few  knew  the  extent  of  his  spiritual  develop- 


SPIRITUALISM  Is  NOT  OF  THE  DEVIL  119 

ment,  for  he  is  one  of  the  truly  inspired  organists  of  this 
country. 

Mr.  Wallace  is  also  the  writer  of  the  world  famous 
song  '  *  Hindustan ' '  and  many  other  popular  melodies  of 
our  day.  The  following  messages  were  chosen  from  a 
great  variety  from  the  unseen  side  of  life,  and  presented 
to  the  author  with  the  hope  that  they  will  be  of  help  in 
proving,  that,  what  is  most  needed  is  OPEN  HEARTS 
AND  MINDS  waiting  for  NEW  LIGHT.  Mr.  Wallace's 
writings  follow : 

* '  Give  out  the  Word  to  all  those  who  would  listen  with 
their  hearts.  To  give  unto  those  who  would  listen  with 
tired  ears  of  the  worldly  world,  is  like  putting  a  napkin 
around  the  neck  of  a  pig  before  filling  his  trough  with 
the  'leavings'  of  the  table.  You  will  always  know 
whether  you  are  casting  your  'line'  in  the  right  stream 
by  the  beetles  that  reside  thereon,  and  you  will  also  know 
when  you  are  serving  a  banquet  to  swine  by  the  'grunt- 
ings'  that  emanate  therefrom.  And  so  always  choose 
words  to  suit  the  occasion  and  the  guests.  If  one's 
stomach  will  hold  only  water,  don't  waste  the  juice  of 
fruits  on  them.  If  one's  eyes  can  only  see  by  candle 
light,  don't  ask  them  to  look  into  the  Face  of  the  Sun, 
and  don't  argue  that  they  are  right  or  wrong;  the  old 
worn  but  still  apropo  adage,  'Time  will  tell'  is  still  the 
great  judge  of  all.  Just  try  to  hold  a  loving  thought  for 
them  and  your  road  will  be  indeed  a  happy  one  and  can 
lead  you  to  but  one  place  and  that  is  the  'Fountain  of 
all.'  " 


"Wherefore  is  mankind  about  to  come  into  the  Great 
Millennium.  At  what  age  of  the  world  is  this  great  thing 
expected  to  come  upon  us  ?  Theologians  have  decreed,  or 
rather  have  they  told  us  that  it  will  be  with  the  coming 
of  the  Christ.  If  that  is  a  fact,  then  the  Millennium 
must  be  with  us  every  minute  of  the  day,  every  day  of 
the  year,  at  any  and  every  moment  some  one  of  us  ar- 
rives at  or  experiences  the  Millennium  or  the  great 


120        PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

Illumination,  or  understanding  of  the  Laws  of  God. 
Why  do  the  Orthodox  insist  on  interpreting  from  the 
cold  words  the  literal  meaning,  instead  of  the  spirit.  The 
Millennium  is  the  uplift  of  the  Spirit,  that  is  the  Christ. 
We  are  Christ  in  Soul  before  we  are  fallen  in  matter  and 
in  matter  we  learn  our  lessons  or  certain  lessons  and 
when  the  dross  is  eliminated  from  us  while  in  that  state 
then  the  Spirit  or  Soul  comes  again  into  its  own.  There- 
fore the  second  coming  of  Christ  or  the  Great  Millen- 
nium. Singly  do  we  come  to  this  state  from  the  universal 
Soul  and  singly  must  we  go  back  from  whence  we  came. 
We  must  all  attain  to  that  degree,  each  must  experience 
his  Millennium  and  no  one  shall  tell  when  it  will  come 
upon  them,  truly  it  shall  come  as  the  thief  in  the  night. 
But  verily  it  shall  steal  and  yet  leave  us  enriched  far 
greater  than  ever  we  were  before  its  coming,  for  it  will 
rob  us  of  our  materialism  and  in  its  stead  give  us  tlic 
great  sight  with  which  we  shall  see  all  and  nothing  shall 
or  can  possibly  be  concealed  from  the  sight.  And  that 
sight  is  called  and  is  spirituality  or  the  rebirth  of  Soul 
or  the  Great  Millennium. ' ' 


11  Since  man  has  begun  to  realize  the  substance  of 
etheric  force,  they  have  been  able  to  come  to  a  definite 
scientific  fact,  that  all  is  really  here  and  now  and  within 
touch  of  the  valuable  information  that  they  or  mankind 
have  been  seeking  for  thousands  of  years.  It  is  here  and 
now  that  they  are  enlightened  with  the  greatness  of  the 
Allness  of  things  and  intensity  of  all  creative  forces  that 
are  operating  thru  the  different  sensiti\es  or  mediums. 
It  is  becoming  so  plain  to  the  great  scientists  that  they 
themselves  are  beginning  to  realize  that  they  themselves 
must  live  the  life  ere  they  can  discover  the  Great  Giver 
of  Light.  They  themselves  must  live  in  the  Abstract  or 
Absolute  or  Light  or  any  other  name  they  wish  to  apply 
to  the  All  Soul.  They  know  that  it  is  impossible  for  them 
to  actually  know  how  palatable  an  orange  is  until  they 
partake  of  that  orange  themselves.  It  is  just  the  same 


SPIRITUALISM  Is  NOT  OF  THE  DEVIL  121 

in  science ;  they  cannot  realize  the  Great  All  unless  they 
consciously  partake  of  the  All.  No  one  can  explain  to 
anyone  else  their  great  experience  and  make  them  realize 
what  they  have  realized.  And  so  with  science  of  to- 
day, the  scientist  must  live  it  himself. ' ' 

"Whether  man's  mentality  is  able  to  grasp  the  great 
thoughts  that  are  of  the  Beyond  is  a  matter  of  con- 
jecture to  many  of  the  so-called  ministers  of  the  sciences. 
But  this  we  do  know,  all  men  are  not  alike,  and  for  that 
we  are  not  only  thankful,  but  extremely  fortunate. 
Very  slow  progress  would  we  make  if  the  entire  world 
were  made  up  of  the  Orthodox  type  of  narrow  minded 
souls  that  are  really  deluded  thru  the  teachings  of  their 
predecessors  and  the  lack  of  mental  courage,  or  in  most 
cases,  the  indifference  to  anything  that  appertains  to 
spirituality.  Their  cry  is  ever,  one  thing  at  a  time,  and 
truly  that  cry  is  correct.  Yea,  verily,  One  Thing  at  a  time. 
But  they  do  not  appreciate  the  great  truth;  the  One 
Great  Thing  is  the  blending  of  the  material  with  the 
spiritual;  the  One  Great  Thing  is  the  mastery  over  the 
material  thru  Love  of  the  spiritual,  not  thru  cruelty  to 
the  material.  When  man  shall  come  into  that  great 
realization,  then  will  his  advancement  be  rapid,  his 
mentality  clear  and  clean  and  ready  to  grasp  any  great 
truth  from  the  beyond,  which  will  at  the  climax  be  not 
the  beyond  but  the  here  and  now. ' ' 


"  Relentlessly  do  men  of  the  age  commit  all  kinds  of 
errors  appertaining  to  the  sciences  of  the  Ethereal 
Realms,  by  their  cold,  calculating  attitude.  How  much 
more  could  they  ascertain  if  they  would  use  a  little  of 
the  Heart  Warmth  that  the  Great  God  gave  all  to  use. 
All  great  questions  are  sought  after  in  the  same  calculat- 
ing manner,  but  only  are  they  successful  when  the  heart 
warmth  is  admitted  and  then  how  easy  it  is  to  prove  any 
of  the  works  that  are  apparently  unfathomable.  Just 
take  for  instance,  the  works  of  the  philosophers  of  the 


122        PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

olden  days,  centuries  before  Christ.  See  how  they  have 
been  clarified,  not  thru  plain  figures  and  cold  deductions, 
but  through  the  Heart  Warmth  together  with  a  steady 
inspiring  flow  from  the  Great  All.  And  so  we  can  know 
anything  that  is  brought  to  light  only  thru  the  Great 
Light  of  All.  Just  remember  the  Heart  of  Man  is  God 's 
reservoir;  it  is  Man's  Heart  that  God  fills  with  His  Light, 
His  Love,  His  Understanding  and  that  is  the  Heart 
Warmth  that  gives  us  courage  to  do  all." 


It  is  to  be  regretted  that  many  minds  are  not  as  open 
to  the  Truth  as  they  are  to  the  teachings  of  Pagan 
Dogmas.  Just  this  note  of  warning  to  the  "Drastic 
Dogma  Defenders"  of  the  world.  Beware!  Before  it 
be  too  late.  The  great  whistle  on  the  engine  of  Truth 
has  sounded  to  clear  the  line.  Do  not  block  the  cross- 
ing of  the  tracks  on  the  railroad  of  Life.  Do  not  allow 
a  train  of  box  cars,  loaded  with  the  Livestock  of  Ignor- 
ance to  obstruct  your  view  when  the  beautifully  lighted 
express  rushes  through  on  the  main  line  of  Facts  and 
Reason,  headed  for  that  wonderful  city  of  Everlasting 
Progression. 

Do  not  be  content  to  ride  on  the  slow  local  of  Uncer- 
tainty ;  stopping  at  every  station  along  the  way,  includ- 
ing those  of  Doubt,  Fear,  Misunderstanding,  Misappli- 
cation, Ignorance,  Valley  of  Belief,  Island  of  Indiffer- 
ence, and  many  other  stations  that  retard  your  real 
journey  to  the  Eternal  City  Beautiful. 

Do  not  miss  the  train  at  the  Union  Station  of  Facts; 
get  aboard  with  your  feet  firmly  planted  on  the  Plat- 
form of  Truth.  Swing  down  the  Alleyway  of  Mental 
Research  to  your  birth  of  Contentment.  Open  your  suit- 
case of  Celestial  Desire,  and  from  it  take  out  the  book 
under  the  title  of  "The  Path  of  Progression";  so,  as 
you  sit  there  looking  out  of  the  window  of  Happiness, 
you  will  recognize  the  stations  of  Self  Liberation,  Mental 
Activity,  Personal  Achievement,  Usefulness,  Freedom 


SPIRITUALISM  Is  NOT  OF  THE  DEVIL  123 

and  God-given  Satisfaction.  Soon  you  shall  hear  the 
Bell  of  Deliverance  and  the  Conductor  of  Years,  known 
as  Father  Time,  will  call  out,  "Next  Station,  KNOWL- 
EDGE." Then,  with  a  firm,  buoyant  step,  walk  out 
of  that  station  into  the  great  City  of  Certainty,  with 
Absolute  Trust  in  the  Heart  and  Absolute  Knowledge 
in  the  Mind,  and  there  wait  and  rest  in  the  House  of 
Enlightenment,  ready  to  Dare,  to  Do,  to  Love. 

Hunt  up  as  an  acquaintance,  one  who  will  turn  out 
to  be  a  firm  friend, — Perseverance;  He  will  introduce 
you  to  his  twin  daughters,  by  name,  Concentration  and 
Contemplation.  For  a  pal,  choose  one  called  Divine 
Law.  He  may  take  you  along  some  very  rocky  roads. 
He  may  seem  to  insist  that  you  climb  a  trail  that  is 
wholly  distastful  to  you.  But  listen,  and  as  you  climb 
you  will  become  conscious  of  "something"  within  your 
breast  saying,  "This  is  just  what  I  needed.  This  exer- 
cise will  be  beneficial  to  me,"  and  you  will  return  from 
your  tramp  better  fitted  to  go  still  further  and  climb  up 
the  Mountain  of  Perfection,  where  you  shall  be  in  daily 
touch  with  Goodness  and  Spiritual  Insight,  Silence,  Up- 
liftment,  Watchfulness,  Vision  and  Victory. 

Your  daily  song  shall  be  *  *  God  is  Spirit ;  All  is  Spirit ; 
I  am  Spirit."  Then,  with  the  knowledge  that  all  things 
spring  from  that  Fount  of  Infinite  Love, — and  that  great 
Thought  of  Eternal  Life  pulsating  through  every  cell 
of  your  body,  you  will  know  that  by  thus  practising  a 
Life  of  Love, — an  Absolute  Blending  of  yourself  with 
the  Great  Divine  Spirit  of  the  Universe,  you  can  wait 
in  patience  the  call  of  the  Great  Master  to  enter  the  life 
beyond  the  Veil,  and  the  "Sayer  of  Verities"  will  take 
you  home,  there  to  blend  with  the  "I  AM"  into  an  At- 
one-ment  with  Him,  in  the  great  world  of  Spiritual 
Progression, — on  and  on,  ever  on,  to  greater  and  grander 
things.  Why,  then,  fear  that  "Death,"  which  is  only 
the  Gateway  to  a  brighter,  nobler  life.  "0,  Death, 
where  is  thy  sting?  0,  Grave,  where  is  thy  Victory?" 


"LET  THERE  BE  LIGHT" 

NOTE. — The  author  desires  to  state  that  to  all  intents  and 
purposes  this  book  was  finished;  the  manuscript  being  edited, 
and  made  ready  for  the  printer's  hands,  when  at  a  private 
circle  where  only  chosen  students  are  invited,  a  message 
came  through  automatic  writing  that  its  receiver  would  in 
due  time  be  given  a  closing  Chapter,  under  the  title  of,  "Let 
There  Be  Light."  The  following  was  received  in  that  man- 
ner, during  two  sittings,  and  is  printed  exactly  as  it  was 
given,  from  spirit  realms,  word  for  word: 

"Let  there  be  Light/'  was  the  God-given  command 
of  Ancient  days.  Again  the  fiat  goes  forth  and  this 
time  it  is  not  mere  material  light,  but  the  Spiritual  Light 
that  is  to  be  made  manifest.  The  light  of  God  bestowed 
knowledge — a  rediscovery  of  the  Truths  of  the  Divine 
religion  of  the  great  Creator,  as  taught  and  practised 
by  Jesus  the  Christ.  Few  realize  that  true  Spiritism 
(or  Spiritualism  as  it  is  commonly  spoken  of),  is  a 
practical  religion  of  Service  to  mankind  at  large,  and 
is  indeed  the  purest  form  of  Christianity,  being  based 
on  lessons  learned  from  the  Sacred  Writings  of  all 
nations  and  all  times,  but  particularly  those  taught  by 
the  God-like  man, — Our  Elder  Brother, — who  walked 
among  men,  felt  as  we  do,  suffered  even  as  we  do,  and 
finally  endured  the  pangs  of  a  cruel,  mortal  death. 

Spiritualism  is  the  collated  evidence  of  all  recorded 
history,  regarding  the  "First  Great  Cause/' — God,  as 
we  call  Him, — a  practical  study  of  the  evidence  that 
exists  the  world  over,  proving  the  fact  that  God  is  liv- 
ing, and,  for  thousands  of  years  has  evidenced  an  actual 
existence  by  communicating  with  those  whom  he  desired 
to  influence  by  means  sometimes  normal,  but  frequently 
super-normal,  such  as  spirit  messengers  (angels)  ;  pro- 

124 


1 '  LET  THERE  BE  LIGHT  "  125 

phetic  utterances,  or  writing  (seers)  ;  phenomena — read 
the  Old  Testament — an  iron  axehead  floating  on  water 
— a  cruise  of  oil,  never  failing — a  fleece  of  wool,  dry  (or 
wet) — as  a  test.  Fire  from  heaven,  in  response  to  prayer. 
All  being  Spiritual  evidence  sent  by  God  to  doubting 
mankind.  Prophecy  of  every  variety,  varying  in  fervor 
for  thousands  of  years.  Manifestations  of  foreknowl- 
edge as  disclosed  to  the  nations  of  all  ages,  considered  as 
supernatural  in  their  days. 

Nothing  with  God  is  supernatural !  His  laws  are  those 
of  Nature,  and  normal;  even  though  we  fail  to  discover 
their  characteristics.  The  Divine  Spiritualistic  religion 
inspires  a  search  for  knowledge  of  God's  attributes  and 
His  intentions  regarding  all  things  created;  stimulates 
us  to  meet  every  wave  that  reaches  to  our  mortal- brain, 
so  that  we  may  attune  ourselves  with  the  unknown  In- 
finite realms  beyond  earth  life,  and  so  obtain  a  firmer 
faith,  a  greater  love  for  God;  and,  by  a  closer  unity  of 
ourselves  with  mankind,  in  harmony  of  spirit,  make  our 
lives  here  more  pure,  more  unselfish,  and  more  fit  to 
meet  the  spirits  passed  hence.  To  this  end  the  man 
Jesus  was  actually  the  essence  of  God  in  man — the  pro- 
totype— the  typical  created  soul  on  earth,  portraying 
the  sublime  power  of  the  Father-God,  as  Creator,  with 
the  Pure  Love  of  the  Divine  Spirit — the  I  AM — un- 
created, incomprehensible  to  mere  mortal  mind — the  All- 
Wise  Spiritual  Essence  of  Eternal  and  Universal  Life. 

Every  religion  that  the  world  has  seen  has  been  de- 
rived from  Inspired  (Spirit)  Intuition.  God's  Word — 
possibly  heard,  more  often  felt  or  written  at  the  insti- 
gation of  an  unknown  power  (control)  has  given  SOME 
spiritualized  being  the  thoughts,  the  energy,  to  lead  to 
the  Unknown  Light. 

A  progressive  mind,  used  by  Spirit  forces,  produced 
Zoroaster,  Confucius,  Buddha,  Mahomet.  Each  a  master 
light  of  his  age.  Each  produced  his  particle  of  Divine 
wisdom  to  strike  the  light  of  souls  in  harmony  and  set 


126        PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

afire  a  new  enthusiasm  for  more  Light  on  the  Life  to 
come  after  death. 

Each  teacher  fulfilled  his  mission  to  humanity.  Then 
Jesus  the  Christ  came  to  earth — meek  and  humble  of 
birth — teaching  the  purest  truth — resisting  all  evil. 
Maintaining  the  potency  of  Love,  Hope,  Charity,  Kind- 
ness, Unselfishness;  dissolving  with  his  spiritual  knowl- 
edge the  difficulties  then  surrounding  the  teachings  of 
the  priests  and  rabbis  of  the  Mosaic  dispensation.  Giving 
new  renderings  of  ancient  dogmas,  and  telling  of  Im- 
mortal Life  through  Eternal  love.  Space  does  not  per- 
mit of  detailed  facts,  but  the  Light  of  the  earth  world 
was  shown  to  mankind  in,  and  through,  the  life  of  Jesus ! 

All  the  prophets,  seers,  wise  men  for  thousands  of 
years  had  spoken  in  detail  of  HIS  earth  life.  His  cruel 
death ;  it  was  Spiritualism,  as  we  know  it  today !  Could 
we  but  understand  the  Scripture  aright — we  should  know 
that  Truth  shines  forth  from  first  to  last.  The  Light- 
beams  seek  to  attract  each  one  of  us,  and  the  God  that 
inspired  the  writings,  ordained  also  these  mysteries 
humanity  cannot  yet  understand  in  the  world's  varied 
religions.  Today  there  are  probably  450,000,000  Brah- 
mins and  Buddhists  in  the  world — all  Spiritualists  in 
varied  forms ;  their  experts  practising  through  ages  past 
all  the  phenomena  of  today,  and  possessing  knowledge 
known  long  before  the  history  of  the  world  as  recorded 
in  our  Bible,  which  is  verified,  however,  in  a  wonderful 
way,  in  their  philosophies.  About  604  B.  C.,  the  Chinese 
reformer,  Lao-tse,  taught  that  "Divine  messengers 
brought  moral  and  religious  truths  to  mankind  in  spirit 
visitations,  and  guided,  for  good  or  evil,  the  destiny  of 
those  to  whom  they  attached  themselves."  The  Lao-tse 
school  of  Philosophy  taught  "that  guardian  spirits  were 
ever  around,  and  that  materialists  were  fools  or  imbe- 
ciles." Kong-fu-tse  (Confucius),  552  B.  C.,  taught  "the 
invisible  world  is  constantly  communicating  with  those 
enlightened  enough  in  the  material  world ' ' ;  that,  '  *  both 
good  and  bad  spirits  surround  and  control  us  for  well 


1 '  LET  THERE  BE  LIGHT  ' '  127 

or  ill."  Their  teachings  were  the  spiritualism  of  the 
ancient  Hebrews,  Hindoos,  Persians,  Chaldeans,  Roman 
Oracles,  Greek  Mysteries,  Roman  Catholic  teachings  of 
old,  and  of  today:  of  Buddhists  and  Brahminical  Yogi, 
lore  of  ancient  times,  as  well  as  those  evidential  scien- 
tific studies  of  Spiritualism  today,  which  has  led  men 
of  European  fame  to  see  the  Light  of  Truth, — as  evi- 
denced by  the  writings  of  such  men  as  John  Wesley, 
Swedenborg,  Pastor  Oberlin,  D.  D.  Home,  F.  W.  H. 
Myers,  W.  T.  Stead,  Ella  Wheeler  Wilcox. 


Spiritualism  is  no  new  fad,  but  is  the  new  revelation 
of  ancient  religion !  Listen  to  what  the  Philosophers  of 
ancient  days  wrote : 

Plato,  in  his  Timoaus,  says:  ''Between  God  and  man 
are  the  daimones,  or  spirits,  who  are  always  near  us, 
though  commonly  invisible  to  us,  and  know  all  our 
thoughts." 

Josephus,  the  great  Jewish  historian,  who  recorded 
the  spirit  manifestations  at  the  Fall  of  Jerusalem,  wrote : 
"If  anyone  think  these  things  incredible,  let  him  keep 
his  opinion  to  himself,  and  not  contradict  those  who,  by 
such  events,  are  incited  to  the  study  of  virtue." 

Zenophon,  in  his  memoirs  of  Socrates,  wrote :  '  *  When 
he  found  any  who  could  not  satisfy  themselves  with  the 
knowledge  that  lay  within  the  reach  of  human  wisdom, 
Socrates  advised  them  to  apply  diligently  to  the  study 
of  divination;  for  whosoever  was  acquainted  with  those 
MEDIUMS  which  the  gods  made  use  of,  when  they  com- 
municated with  man,  need  never  be  destitute  of  Divine 
counsel. ' ' 

Aristotle  says  (Physics,  iv,  2,  3)  :  "All  these  invisible 
beings  are  as  substantial  as  the  material  beings." 

Pythagoras  says:  "Spirits  announce  to  man  secret 
things,  and  foretell  the  future." 

Empedocles  (Carminia  V,  11-15)  :  "Spiritual  forces 
move  the  invisible  world." 

Plato:     "The  daemons   (spirits)   direct  man,  in  the 


128        PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

quality  of  guardian  spirits,  in  all  his  actions ;  as  witness 
the  demon  of  Socrates." 

Cicero  says:  " Natural  divination  arises  from  an 
inner  state  and  activity  in  certain  men  of  great  consti- 
tional  purity,  which  enables  an  unfettered  advance  of 
the  soul  to  foretell  future  things  from  an  inner  and 
divine  source  confined  in  the  inner  recesses  of  the  mind, 
and  moved  thereto  by  a  divine  impulse." 

Of  modern  writers,  Bishop  Burnet  says :  '  *  Those  who 
hate  the  very  name  of  a  miracle,  in  reality,  suppose  the 
greatest  of  all  miracles; — the  tying  up  of  the  hands  of 
the  Almighty  from  disposing  events  according  to  His 
will." 

Spiritualism  did  not  originate  with  the  Fox  Sisters. 
Manifestations  similar  to  theirs  were  exemplified  in 
the  days  of  Marcus  Antinous  when  "Aristides  the 
Orator,  told  of  events  then  occuring  at  distant  places." 
Even  2500  years  ago  Epimenides,  the  Poet,  and  friend 
of  Solon  of  Greece,  (as  recorded  by  Pliny)  "on  waking 
from  long  periods  of  trance,  related  scenes  of  spirit 
life,"  similar  to  those  described  by  our  modern  Sweden- 
borg.  The  Roman  Philosophy  was  similar,  but  was 
clearly  derived  from  Greek  sources  varied  to  suit  local 
conditions.  St.  Augustine,  (DeVeritate,  XVIII-23) 
quotes  the  Erythraen  Sibyl  of  Chaldea,  in  her  prophecy 
describing  the  life  of  Christ ;  and  Virgil  in  his  Eclogue 
IV  recites  a  similar  one,  given  40  years  before  Christ's 
birth,  by  the  Cumaean  Sybil  of  Troy. 

Thus  we  find  inspired  and  profane  history  alike  bear 
witness  to  Spiritistic  Light  and  Prophecy.  Indeed  it 
would  appear  from  the  account  written  by  Ammianus 
Marcellinus,  in  the  reign  of  the  Emperor  Valens,  A.  D. 
371,  that  "certain  philosophers  were  tried  for  divina- 
tion by  means  of  a  table"  similar  in  action  to  the  mod- 
ern Ouija  Board.  This  is  confirmed  by  Socrates,  Schol- 
asticus  and  others. 

World   reform  is  evolution   of  the   human  mind   at 


' '  LET  THERE  BE  LIGHT  "  129 

such  time  as  God  sees  the  necessity  of  individuals  and 
nations. 

Spiritualism  illustrates  this  in  its  expansion.  The  idea 
gradually  grew,  took  root  in  many  minds  and  was 
READY,  when  the  world  war  arose,  to  show  itself  as  a 
means  of  VERIFYING  immortal  existence  by  linking  up 
the  mortal  with  the  spiritual  entity — through  the  chains 
of  love,  affection,  and  intelligent  communication. 

A  Supreme  Power  controls  the  Universe  and  guides 
its  vibrations  (ethereal  and  many  other  waves)  so  as 
to  impinge  on  the  organs  of  certain  attuned  individuals, 
so  that  they  may  see,  hear,  feel,  and  understand  phe- 
nomena which  may  be  imperceptible  to  other  people. 

A  true  Reformation — physical,  moral,  intellectual, 
spiritual!  The  Light  Beacon  shining  forth  to  help  hu- 
manity prove  the  truth  of  Spiritualism — when  prac- 
ticed! Physical  science  cannot  be  expected  to  accept 
Spiritual  phenomena  until  the  mind  of  the  scientific  ex- 
perimentalist is  capable  of  reaching  out  from  the  earthly 
material  plane  and  discovering  that,  beyond  its  mun- 
dane recognized  natural  laws,  there  are  higher  spiritual 
laws;  governed  by  order,  and  as  immutable  as  those 
we  are  ready  to  accept  as  our  guide  in  seeking  to  ac- 
count for  obscure  natural  phenomena.  No  two  persons 
see,  feel,  hear  alike,  so  science  is  ever  changing  its  bases, 
and  PROGRESS  is  a  Divine  law, — especially  in  knowledge 
of  the  Hereafter ! 

Spiritualism  teaches  of  God;  Life  after  Death;  Self- 
Regeneration;  Mercy  as  God's  Attribute.  It  aims  to 
make  mankind  better  qualified  by  living  in  Unselfish- 
ness, Virtue,  Honesty,  Purity;  loving  to  one  another; 
realizing  that  beneficent  spirits  are  ever  seeking  to  guide 
and  help,  if  we  will  permit  them  so  to  do.  Life  on  earth 
is  a  continued  series  of  inexplicable  phenomena — changes 
of  body,  unseen  and  unfelt, — constant  renewal, — and 
yet  the  same  individual  to  all  appearance.  Death  is  but 
a  change,  in  which  the  organs,  as  we  know  them,  fail 
to  react  to  our  view,  (in  similar  manner)  ;  and,  in  which 


130        .PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOB  POSITIVE  PREACHERS 

state  Spiritualists  believe  more  pure  materials  than  flesh 
and  blood  function, — in  some  other  phase  of  Life  lead- 
ing to  Eternal  existence.  A  Transition — Translation! 

St.  Paul  said:  " Flesh  and  blood  cannot  inherit  the 
kingdom  of  God."  ''There  is  a  natural  body  and  there 
is  a  spiritual  body. "  "  We  shall  all  be  changed ;  and  bear 
the  image  of  the  heavenly  as  we  have  borne  the  image 
of  the  earthly." 

Here,  on  earth,  each  one  of  us  is  working  out  for  him- 
self that  cycle  of  progress,  through  the  Universe,  which 
shall  purify  the  soul,  and  fit  the  Divine  essence  im- 
planted in  each  mortal  body  to  return  to  the  Creator, 
when  its  ordained  development  has  been  fully  matured, 
and  the  spirit  is  liberated  from  mortal  desire  in  its 
home  of  material  flesh. 

Be  assured,  ye  who  read  these  lines,  that  God  liveth 
today  as  powerful  as  when,  at  the  creation,  He  issued 
his  fiat,  LET  THERE  BE  LIGHT !  He  is  all  around 
us.  He  liveth  IN  us  if  we  so  desire!  His  ministering 
spirits  are  potent  for  good.  They  bear  our  prayers  to 
His  home  beyond ;  and,  if  we  worship  Him  in  Faith  and 
in  Truth,  the  message  He  gave  to  the  children  of  Israel, 
(as  recorded  in  Exodus  XXIII-20)  shall  be  applied  to 
us  also — "  Behold  I  send  my  angel,  who  shall  go  before 
thee,  and  keep  thee  in  thy  journey,  and  bring  thee  into 
the  place  I  have  prepared."  At  this  point  the  writing 
stopped  and  the  question  was  asked  mentally  if  the  mes- 
sage was  concluded,  when,  the  hand  was  controlled  again 
and  wrote,— "  IT  IS  FINISHED,  16th  March,  1921." 

H   *   * 

BENEDICTION 

0,  Father  of  All  in  that  centre  of  the  Universe  that 
thou  hast  created,  lead  us  to  a  knowledge  that  thou  art 
the  Supreme  Creator  and  thou  alone :  that  creeds  are  as 
nothing ;  that  thou  art  a  loving  God  and  that  all  created 
things  abide  in  thy  Love.  Teach  us  to  understand  that 


PESKY  PROBLEMS  FOR  POSITIVE  PREACHERS        131 

all  the  nations  and  religions  are  one  to  thee ;  that  Chris- 
tian, Jew,  Mohammedan,  Buddhist,  Confucian,  Brahman, 
are  thy  children.  That  Love  and  Brotherhood,  Truth, 
and  Justice,  unselfishness,  charity,  mercy,  and  prayer 
alone  lead  to  Thee. 

Help  us  to  practice  Thy  Will  and  bring  us  speedily 
to  the  end  of  this  life  of  pain  and  sorrow,  and  finally 
receive  us  into  Oneness  with  thyself  for  evermore. 

Moreover  something  is,  or  seems, 
That  teaches  me  with  mystic  gleams, 
Like  glimpses  of  forgotten  dreams — 
Of  something  felt,  like  something  here; 
Of  something  done,  I  know  not  where; 
Such  as  no  language  may  declare! 

Tennyson. 


THE  END 


Read  this  Book 

If  You  Want 
The  Truth 

ILLUSTRIOUS 
MADMEN  of  the  AGES 

By  James  McGregor  Beatty 


Being  the  testimony  of  the  World's  greatest  Scientists, 
and  others,  regarding  Spiritualism,  and  its  psychical  phe- 
nomena, together  with  a  Spiritualistic  Encyclopedia  of  the 
Old  and  New  Testaments. 

Contains  quotations  from  the  Talmud,  the  Koran,  Book 
of  Mormon,  the  Gospel  of  Buddha,  Hinduism,  the  Zoroastrian 
Religion,  Methodism,  Douay  version  of  the  Catholic  Bible 
and  others,  showing  their  Spiritualism. 

One  chapter  is  devoted  to  "Wisdom  Persecuted,"  giving  the 
most  flagrant  cases  of  "Religious"  persecution  which  stand 
out  in  the  history  of  the  world. 

Every  Liberal  should  get  the  book  for  Facts;  Every  Spir- 
itualist, for  Reference;  the  Orthodox,  for  Knowledge. 

PS 

Address 

JAMES  MCGREGOR  BEATTY 

245  North  Hope  Street 

Los   Angeles,   Cal. 
[132] 


Tribute  of  Readers  and  the  Press 

"Your  book  of  127  pages  has  the  merit,  the  collected  merit, 
of  being  much,  very  much,  in  a  little  space.  These  massive 
volumes  bloated  with  polysyllabic  words,  have  had  their  day. 
Your  book  is  rich  in  facts  and  inspired  principles  that 
prophesy  of  immortality.  My  prayer  is  that  this  excellent 
book  may  be  a  prelude  to  future  works  from  your  energetic 
and  well-balanced  brain." 

— James  M.  Peebles,  M.D.,  M.A.,  Ph.D. 

"A  trite  old  saying  with  a  big  meaning,  is  this:  'Good 
goods  are  done  up  in  small  packages.'  This  saying  was 
never  more  truly  spoken  than  of  Mr.  James  McGregor 
Beatty's  little  book  with  the  somewhat  alarming  title,  'Illus- 
trious Mad-Men  of  the  Ages.'  In  this  book  the  great  men  of 
the  ages  gather  and  express  themselves — witnesses  they  are 
— before  an  austere  court  of  critics  giving  utterance  to  ex- 
pressions of  Truth,  that  no  stable-minded  man  dare  deny. 
Not  only  is  the  book  a  court  of  testimony,  but  it  is  a  store- 
house of  information  on  religious  movements  whose  past 
originated  in  Spiritual  Manifestations.  From  the  Talmud, 
the  Book  of  Mormon,  the  Gospel  of  Buddha,  the  Koran  of 
Mohammed,  the  Vedas  and  all  modern  religions,  quotations 
are  taken  which  establish  beyond  peradventure  a  spiritual 
basis,  together  with  claims  of  spiritual  manifestations.  Be- 
tween the  two  lids  of  the  small  volume  can  also  be  found  a 
complete  Spiritualistic  Encyclopedia  of  both  the  Old  and 
New  Testaments.  This  feature  alone  is  worth  many  times 
the  price  of  the  book  and  is  ammunition  every  truth  seeker 
should  hqve  at  hand.  Mr.  Beatty  has  produced  a  handy 
classic  digest  of  much  value.  None  but  one  who  has  com- 
piled and  reduced  matter  such  as  he  gives  in  this  work, 
knows  the  care  and  labor  involved." — Mrs.  Bernie  Babcock. 
Novelist  and  playwright  of  Little  Rock,  Ark.  President  of 
Friends  Memorial  for  Psychical  Research;  Arkansas  Rep- 
resentative of  "League  of  American  Pen  Women";  author  of 
the  Abraham  Lincoln  Romance,  "The  Soul  of  Ann  Rutledge." 

Dr.  David  Starr  Jordan  of  Stanford  University  writes: 
"Let  me  thank  you  for  your  interesting  booklet  on  the  'Illus- 
trious Mad-Men.'  I  find  the  historical  record  very  interesting 
and  just." 

Rev.  Dr.  Andrew  Malcolm  Morrison,  F.R.L.S.,  member 
American  Anthropological  Society,  writes:  "In  'Illustrious 
Mad-Men  of  the  Ages/  James  McGregor  Beatty  has  given  a 
symposium  of  Psychical  Phenomena  of  the  Earth  as  recorded 
in  all  languages,  among  all  races.  He  has  searched  the  litera- 
ture and  science  of  earth  with  an  acumen  and  judgment  abso- 
lutely marvelous,  and  with  a  patient  penetration  capable  only 
of  the  Scot. 

[133] 


"If,  after  reading  his  wonderful  and  all  embracing  work, 
any  one  shall  remain  a  skeptic,  he  may  be  considered  as 
absolutely  spiritually  blind  and  may  be  relegated  to  the 
sphere  of  mental  and  spiritual  imbecility." 

The  above  testimony  of  Dr.  Morrison  is  most  impressive. 
He  is,  perhaps,  one  of  the  most  remarkable  men  on  earth. 
Nearing  the  wonderful  age  of  a  century,  his  eye  is  not  dim 
nor  his  natural  force  abated.  He  ranks  in  profound  scholar- 
ship with  the  Sages.  He  is  a  graduated  M.D.,  a  voluminous 
author,  chancellor  of  the  Panteka  University  and  holds  mem- 
bership in  some  of  the  most  scholarly  associations.  He,  for 
seventy  years,  has  been  an  able  preacher  of  the  Gospel,  both 
in  Europe  and  America,  and  stands  unsurpassed  as  an  orator 
of  profound  erudition  and  impressive  eloquence.  He  is  also 
a  successful  Healer  of  Disease  by  the  Gift  of  the  Spirit. 
— The  Author. 

Robert  C.  Kroll,  author,  publisher  and  associate  editor  of 
the  Trades  Council  Union  News  of  St.  Louis,  writes:  "I 
read  your  book  and  found  it  very  interesting.  To  students 
of  Spiritual  Science  it  will  prove  a  very  useful  reference, 
because  you  have  collected  many  valuable  references  in  a 
very  small  space.  It  should  also  prove  a  deciding  factor  to 
those  who  are  on  the  fence  and  don't  know  on  which  side  to 
get  off.  This  fact  should  make  the  book  popular  with  prose- 
lyting Spiritualists." 

Elizabeth  Deuress,  founder  of  the  Los  Angeles  School  of 
Metaphysics,  writes:  "I  have  enjoyed  reading  'Illustrious 
Mad-Men.'  I  think  the  book  is  fine,  and  I  feel  that  it  should 
be  widely  circulated,  for  it  deals  with  facts  and  states  the 
Truth." 

A  review  printed  in  AZOTH,  1400  Broadway,  New  York 
City,  says:  "The  purpose  of  this  book  is  to  show  the  wide- 
spread belief  in  Spiritualism  and  Spiritism  throughout  the 
ages,  with  the  suggestion  that  to  the  unprejudiced  mind,  it 
would  seem  impossible  that  all  the  illustrious  witnesses  re- 
ferred to  by  the  author  should  have  been  madmen,  as  the 
world  generally  seems  to  have  classified  them.  It  is  true 
that  the  community  is  inclined  to  regard  as  insane  those  who 
disagree  radically  with  prevailing  beliefs,  and  that  many 
who  were  so  looked  upon  in  their  day  are  now  considered 
merely  as  having  been  in  advance  of  their  time.  And  yet  this 
in  no  way  proves  that  any  particular  idea  that  is  refused 
general  acceptance  expresses  truths  higher  than  those  already 
reached  by  the  multitude.  Such  a  conclusion  would  make 
madmen  of  humanity  in  general.  However,  the  author's  array 
of  names  and  facts  is  certainly  both  interesting  and  impres- 
sive. And  it  suggests  that  whatever  one's  belief  regarding 
Spiritualism,  he  will  not  lack  good  company  in  accepting  it." 

[134] 


Mrs.  M.  L.  Lee,  513  Coal  street,  Wilkinsburg,  Pa.,  writes: 
"Received  the  25  copies  of  your  book,  and  I  did  not  have  the 
string  cut  on  the  package  until  they  were  all  sold.  I  enclose 
a  P.  O.  money  order,  for  which  send  me  100  more  copies  as 
soon  as  possible,  for  the  people  seem  very  anxious  for  just 
such  a  book.  People  who  never  had  their  eyes  opened  cer- 
tainly have  them  opened  when  they  read  'Illustrious  Mad-Men 
of  the  Ages.' " 

"Enclosed,  find  check  for  100  more  copies  of  'Illustrious 
Mad-Men  of  the  Ages.'  I  took  the  last  100  copies  I  got  to 
the  church  and  did  not  have  them  there  fifteen  minutes  'till 
they  were  all  sold.  Could  have  sold  100  more  copies  right 
away  if  I  had  only  ordered  more.  As  soon  as  your  new 
book,  'Pesky  Problems  for  Positive  Preachers,'  is  ready,  let 
me  know.  I  think  they  will  sell  quickly." 

— Mrs.  M.  L.  Lee. 

Basil  King,  the  famous  English  novelist  and  author  of  "The 
Abolishing  of  Death,"  writes :  "Your  little  book  just  received, 
and  I  may  say  that  a  glance  into  it  shows  me  that  I  shall  be 
glad  to  read  it — that  I  shall  do  so  with  profit." 

From  a  noted  public  worker  and  lecturer :  "I  have  been 
handed  a  copy  of  your  book,  'Illustrious  Mad-Men  of  the 
Ages,'  and  I  am  very  much  pleased  with  it.  This  book  should 
be  in  the  hands  of  every  Spiritualist  in  the  country.  I  feel 
it  will  give  the  world  something  to  think  about." — Mrs.  Ellen 
Halderbaum,  Massillon,  Ohio. 

Ethel  G.  Brady,  editor  of  Psyche  of  Detroit,  Mich.,  a  maga- 
zine devoted  to  Psychology,  Philosophy  and  Science,  writes: 
"We  have  received  a  copy  of  your  book,  'Illustrious  Mad-Men 
of  the  Ages,'  and  have  read  it  with  much  interest.  Please 
allow  us  to  compliment  you  on  its  policy  and  its  splendid 
appearance.  We  consider  that  the  quotations,  as  you  have 
compiled  them,  make  it  a  very  valuable  work,  which  would 
be  of  great  assistance  to  any  one  trying  to  justify  a  belief 
in  Spiritualism  by  the  teachings  of  the  Bible.  Personally,  I 
keep  it  on  my  desk  as  a  ready  reference  and  find  it  most 
helpful." 

From  the  famous  actor  and  screen  star,  Monroe  Salisbury: 
"Many  thanks  for  your  'Illustrious  Mad-Men  of  the  Ages.' 
I  have  read  it  and  carefully  digested  it — so  to  speak — and  I 
found  it  most  unusual  and  interesting,  and  I  am  positive 
you  are  to  be  highly  congratulated." 

M.  E.  Cadwallader,  editor  of  The  Progressive  Thinker, 
Chicago,  writes:  "I  have  read  'Illustrious  Mad-Men  of  the 
Ages'  carefully  and  am  much  interested  in  its  contents.  Send 
me  one  dozen  copies." 

[135] 


Guy  Bogart,  California  poet,  magazine  writer  and  head  of 
the  Guy  Bogart  Press  Syndicate  Service,  writes:  "Your  new 
book  received  and  I  am  delighted  with  it,  for  it  fills  a  niche 
in  our  literature  that  has  not  been  filled  before." 

Also,  letters  were  received  from  Sir  Harry  Lauder,  Ger- 
trude Atherton,  Upton  Sinclair,  Henry  Ford,  New  York 
Academy  of  Medicine,  University  of  California  and  Dr. 
Abraham  Wallace  of  London,  an  associate  of  Sir  Oliver  Lodge 
and  Sir  Conan  Doyle. 


[136] 


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Regarding  these  books  address  all  communications  to 

MR.  GEORGE  FRANCIS, 

3055  East  Fourth  Street, 

Los  Angeles,  California,  U.  S.  A. 


13122 


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